Champions League: Inter, Roma Try to Match Their Cross-Town Rivals

By: Martha | November 7th, 2007

Wheeee! Lazio and Milan did Serie A proud yesterday; today it’s the turn of Roma and Inter, both of whom would put themselves in great position to advance by taking three points today.

Inter, slowly getting defenders back from suspension, are suddenly facing a midfield crisis, with Luis Figo, Dejan Stankovic and Patrick Vieira all out with long-term injuries. Luis Jimenez has recovered from whatever was wrong with him but, since Manini doesn’t actually seem to see him as an option, that probably does matter much. Suffice to say the squad list for today’s match features not one but two youth midfielders. Sweet.

Though CSKA Moscow are bottom of the group and out of the title race in the Russian league (albeit in third place), the match is what the Brits like to call a banana skin precisely because the Russian team are desperate for a win, and can certainly create chances for themselves through Brazilians Jô (who scored on the home leg) and Vágner Love, who missed the last match but is healthy now and expected to feature. Inter won the first leg through a lucky goal (though they were the better team, at least in the second half) and are wildly erratic in Europe, as likely to come out and wander around aimlessly for 90 minutes as they are to put in a dominating performance and all but book themselves a spot in the next round.

Roma, meanwhile, have the great privilege of being in Lisbon, where it’s a sunny 70 degrees right now — they’re never going to want to go home. They do, however, have a match to play against a team that is still very young and very good, just as they were when Roma beat them 2-1 at home on the last matchday. Sporting could be without first-choice keeper Vladimir Stojković, but other than that are mostly healthy; still out for the Italians are Francesco Totti and Alberto Aquilani, but they’ve been muddling through OK without the pair of them so far, and there’s no reason to believe they won’t continue to do so, particularly if Mirko Vučinić decides he wants to finish once or twice. (RomaChris has got a full preview up, while PortugalGreg invites the eager among you to write your own.)