Here’s our Sparta Prague Vs Inter Milan preview, prediction, team news and predicted lineups ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League tie.
Sparta Pague Vs Inter Milan Preview
Inter lost their first European game of the season to a late goal at Bayer Leverkusen last time out.
That was the first time they had conceded in this year’s Champions League, following a run of five straight clean sheets.
The Italian champions have looked near impossible to break down, but haven’t been great in attack, scoring only seven goals in six matches.
Still, they are sat sixth in the table with 13 points and look like a good bet to make the round of 16 automatically.
Simon Inzaghi’s men have lost just three games in all competitions this season.
Aside from the Leverkusen defeat, they have lost two Milan derbies against rivals AC Milan.
In Serie A, Inter are second – three points behind leaders Napoli but with a game in hand.
This week, they travel to Czech side Sparta Prague, who have had very different fortunes in Europe this season.
Sparta have taken just four points from their six matches. They beat Red Bull Salzburg 3-0 before a 1-1 draw in Stuttgart, but have since lost four on the bounce.
Even a win against Inter would not lift them into the playoff positions, meaning they will have to also beat Bayer Leverkusen away in the final fixture to give themselves a chance of progressing.
A 6-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid was their worst result of the campaign to date, and the odds are heavily against Sparta this week as well.
Following a great start to the season – where they went unbeaten in 15 – they have lost eight of their last 17 games.
Sparta now sit third in the Czech top league, 13 points behind leaders and massive rivals Slavia Prague.
Sparta Prague Vs Inter Milan Team News
Inter will still be missing all three of Yann Bisseck, Hakan Calhanoglu and Joaquin Correa.
But they did recently see defenders Benjamin Pavard and Francesco Acerb return to the side in a welcome boost.
Veteran midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan came off the bench at the weekend after missing the previous two games, but it’s unclear if he will come back into the starting side in midweek.
Lautaro Martinez should lead the line for Inzaghi’s men, and looks back to his best.
For Sparta Prague, their main attacking outlets will likely be Albion Rrahmani and Victor Olatunji.
The pair have both looked dangerous and have been involved in Sparta’s goals in the competition already.
Imanol Garcia and Angelo Preciado are the side’s long-term injury concerns.
There also remains a major doubt over Lukas Haraslin, who is racing to get fit from a hamstring problem.
Meanwhile, Elias Cobbaut could be back in contention, along with new signing Magnus Anderson and Midtjylland loanee Jan Kuchta.
Sparta Prague Vs Inter Milan Predicted Lineups
Sparta Prague: Jensen; Vitik, Panak, Zelezny; Wiesner, Laci, Kairinen, Rynes; Birmancevic, Olatunji, Rrahmani
Inter Milan: Sommer; Pavard, De Vrij, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Asllani, Zielinski, Dimarco; Martinez, Thuram
Sparta Prague Vs Inter Milan Prediction
There is little to suggest Sparta Prague will pose a threat to Inter. The visiting Italian giants have an abundance of quality and should win this one fairly comfortably.
While scoring hasn’t always been easy in this year’s Champions League, Inter’s defence has been nye impenetrable and should see them to a straightforward victory.
At the time of writing, the best football betting sites have hosts Sparta Prague as 15/2 underdogs, while Inter are the favourites at 5/12.
Prediction: Sparta Prague 0-2 Inter Milan
