Inter handed Sheriff Tiraspol their first defeat of the European season on matchday 3 and brought the high-flying Moldovans back to ground zero, although they still sit on top of Group D.
The pivotal encounter at the Bolshaya Sportivnaya Arena is bound to have huge repercussions on the final group standings.
Preview
A fortnight ago, Sheriff met Inter in the first-ever clash between an Italian and Moldovan team in history, with the Nerazzurri downing the visitors by a 3-1 score at the Giuseppe Meazza. It was the first loss in European competition, including qualifiers, since August 2020 for Sheriff – ending an impressive run of 11 unbeaten games (W8, D3).
Inter have great incentive to play to the best of their abilities as they search for a Round of 16 place nearing the end of group stages. Also, they could record consecutive wins in the competition for the first time since October 2018.
They beat Udinese 2-0 on the weekend and continued their fantastic Serie A form, but they will need to muster the same confidence if they are to avoid staring at their fourth consecutive elimination from the Champions League group stages.
However, they will face a stern Sheriff side who last experienced defeat at home at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur in the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League. Since then, they have recorded a five-match unbeaten home streak across the Europa and Champions League (W3, D2).
Previous Results
Sheriff – W, L, W, W, W
Inter – L, W, D, W, W
Expected Lineups & Team News
Sheriff
Sheriff will be without three players – Lovro Bizjak, Momo Yansane and Boban Nikolov.
4-2-3-1 – Celeadnic; Fernando, Arboleda, Dulanto, Cristiano; Addo, Thill; Traore, Kolovos, Bruno; Yakhshiboev
Inter
Simone Inzaghi has a perfectly fit squad to take on the Moldovan heavyweights, with the only notable absentee being Danish superstar Christian Eriksen.
3-5-2 – Handanovic; Skriniar, De Vrij, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Brozovic, Calhanoglu, Perisic; Dzeko, Martinez
Prediction: Sheriff 0-2 Inter
Although Sheriff will be backed by a confident home crowd, the quality of depth and firepower the Nerazzurri possess cannot be ignored as they will look to enter the top two spots in contention for qualification to the next round.