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FC Barcelona are preparing to face Inter Milan in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final on April 30 at the Montjuic stadium. It will be a golden opportunity for Hansi Flick’s team to take a commanding lead at home before heading into a tough second leg fixture at San Siro in Italy next week. Since Barcelona are coming off an emphatic but fatiguing 120-minute thriller against Real Madrid in the Copa Del Rey Final from Saturday, team selection has been a major point of discussion in the build-up to the Inter Milan game.
Hansi Flick has said that all the players are fatigued from such a tight schedule but are in high spirits to compete well in this semi-final tie. Although he has hinted that we might see some rotations in the latter stages of tomorrow’s game, one thing that is confirmed is the goalie for Barca. Marc Andre Ter-Stegen’s return after six long months of injury had casted some doubts about Szczesny’s continued first-choice status in the team but Flick has now confirmed that he will start in the game against Inter Milan tomorrow.
Their defence is one of the best in Europe: Flick praises Inter ahead of UCL clash
While Szczesny has said that he is completely fine to being benched by Ter-Stegen as he had come in as a replacement for the German, Flick does not want to make such a major change to his winning combination and will continue with the Polish shot-topper between the sticks. He has also said that Ter Stegen might be played in the upcoming LaLiga game on the weekend, where he might bench a couple of his key players for rotation and rest.
Speaking about his upcoming opponents, Flick admired the quality that Inter Milan possess and said that they will not be an easy opponent to beat. He said, “Inter is a very difficult opponent… Their defence is one of the best in Europe.” With Szczesny in goal; who has only lost one game in a Barcelona shirt till date, it will be interesting to see what cooks up in this thrilling matchup.
