Atletico Madrid welcome Inter Milan to the Wanda Metropolitano
Seeking to overturn a one-goal deficit, Atletico Madrid welcome Inter Milan to the Wanda Metropolitano for the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday night.
The Nerazzurri claimed a slender 1-0 first-leg victory at San Siro three weeks ago, courtesy of a late second-half strike from Marko Arnautovic.
Following a bitterly disappointing group-stage exit in last season’s Champions League, Atletico Madrid have at least gone one better this term by reaching the last 16, but their face an uphill battle to advance to their third quarter-final in five seasons following an underwhelming first-leg showing against Inter.
After winning 12 Serie A games on the trot, Inter are firmly in the driving seat to win their 20th Scudetto as they sit pretty at the summit with 75 points from 28 matches, boasting a whopping 16-point lead over rivals AC Milan in second place.
Inter will be confident of securing their spot in the quarter-finals having progressed from seven of their last eight Champions League knockout ties after winning the first leg, but success against Atleti is not a given as the Nerazzurri have failed to win any of their last 10 visits to Spain in Europe’s elite club competition.
Atletico can ill-afford another powderpuff performance in the final third if they wish to turn the tie around against a red-hot Inter side, who have looked unstoppable in recent months.
The momentum is certainly with the Italian visitors and although their record in Spain does not make for good reading, they have star names such as Martinez returning from a rest at the weekend to fire Inzaghi’s side into the quarter-finals.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Dortmund host PSV Eindhoven at the Westfalenstadion
A place in the Champions League quarter-finals is up for grabs as Borussia Dortmund welcome PSV Eindhoven to Westfalenstadion for the second leg of their last-16 tie on Wednesday night.
The tie is finely poised after a 1-1 draw was played out in the first leg in the Netherlands three weeks ago, with Luuk de Jong‘s second-half penalty cancelling out an early opener from ex-PSV man Donyell Malen.
Five days after sharing the spoils with PSV, Dortmund were beaten 3-2 at home to Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga, but they have since bounced back with consecutive wins away from home against Union Berlin and
.
The German outfit head into Wednesday’s second leg following an indifferent run of form on home soil, having come out on top in only four of their last nine matches at Westfalenstadion in all competitions, but they are unbeaten in their last eight Champions League home games, which bodes well ahead of the visit of PSV.
Since drawing the first leg with Dortmund, PSV have accumulated seven points from three Eredivisie fixtures, following up a thumping 7-1 win at PEC Zwolle and 2-2 home draw with Feyenoord with a slender 1-0 victory away against Go Ahead Eagles last weekend.
PSV’s heavy 4-0 loss at Arsenal in the Champions League group stage is one of only two defeats suffered by Peter Bosz‘s side in 39 matches across all tournaments so far this season, but their resolve is set to be put to the test by Dortmund on Wednesday.
Indeed, PSV travel to Westfalenstadion having failed to win any of their previous 16 visits to Germany in all competitions, losing on 13 occasions; they have lost five of their last six such matches in the Champions League, while their last-ever triumph in Germany was against Eintracht Braunschweig back in December 1977.
There was little to separate Dortmund and PSV three weeks ago, and another closely-contested encounter could be on the cards on Wednesday between two teams who will be confident in their own abilities to advance to the last eight.
Even though they head to Germany as slight underdogs, PSV will not be taken lightly by BVB and the Dutch outfit could push their Bundesliga counterparts all the way, potentially beyond the 90 minutes. However, we believe that Dortmund will ultimately find a way to get the job done in front of a raucous home atmosphere.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Celta Vigo sack manager Rafael Benitez
Celta Vigo have sacked manager Rafael Benitez after less than nine months.
Former Liverpool and Chelsea boss Benitez, 63, joined the La Liga side on 23 June last year and departs after winning just five of his 28 league matches in charge of Celta.
He leaves the club 17th in the Spanish top flight, sitting outside of the relegation zone by just two points.
It was Benitez’s first managerial role since being sacked by Premier League side Everton in January 2022.
In 33 games in all competitions, Celta managed just nine wins, three of which were against lower-division sides in the Copa del Rey. His final game with Celta was a 4-0 defeat to another of his former clubs, Real Madrid, on Sunday.
A club statement read: “Rafa Benitez and his staff leave RC Celta after eight months of absolute dedication and total commitment, but in which the team has not obtained the results expected by the club.
“The club would like to express to Rafa Benitez and his assistants its most sincere gratitude for the honesty and professionalism they have shown since their arrival and the tireless work they have done. RC Celta would also like to wish them the best of luck and success in the future.”
Celta Vigo are next in La Liga action on Sunday at Sevilla, kicking off at 13:00 GMT.
Benitez won the 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup with Liverpool and the 2013 Europa League during his interim spell at Chelsea.
He guided Newcastle to promotion from the Championship in the 2016-17 season, and has also managed Valencia, Inter Milan and Napoli.
Credit: bbc.com
