It's the final group stages matchday of the Champions League, and Roma and Inter Milan need to win their midweek matches. After such a poor display from Italian sides in the Europa League, the Serie A needs to hold its head high and have three teams go into the knockout stages of Europe's top competition. If Inter can manage to steal first place in their group from Tottenham, and Roma manage to qualify in their group, things will be looking slightly brighter for the Serie A, and the two clubs themselves.
Roma will be travelling to Romania for their match on Wednesday against CFR Cluj, and while at first it doesn't look like a very difficult match, an upset could end Roma's Champions League campaign early. After their fantastic 2-2 draw against Chievo (Chievo came back from two goals down, and then came close to scoring a winner after De Rossi was sent off in the final minutes), they play Cluj, and then the giallorossi will be hosting last-placed Bari next weekend. But two tough matches come right after playing Bari, first they'll have to host Lazio in the Coppa Italia in the midweek, and then they travel to AC Milan the following weekend, and both of those matches could finish in a loss for Ranieri's side.
While I think that Roma will manage to move on to the knockout stages of the Champions League, Lazio could knock out Roma from the Coppa Italia, and then the Ibrahimovic led AC Milan could easily defeat Roma at the San Siro. What do you think? Share your comments below!
Inter Milan are certainly in one of their worst moments right now, especially after their 3-1 loss to Lazio over the weekend. But Rafa Benitez has remained upbeat and optimistic about his current situation with Inter, and he seems to be prepared to grab a win away against Werder Bremen, which is the last game of Inter's group stages in the Champions League. Yet the odds seemed stacked against him, not only will Rafa Benitez be missing Diego Milito, but the Spaniard will also have to do without Wesley Sneijder and Lucio! A cold trip to Germany doesn't seem the best place to test out even more new youngsters, but it seems like Benitez will be forced to.
Right after the important game in the Champions League, Benitez has a chance to redeem himself after this season's bad start with the European champions will travel to Abu Dhabi to play in the FIFA World Club Cup. Many players seem set to return in this competition, and winning a fairly simple trophy could motivate and convince players enough to begin winning in the other competitions. It's very possible that Julio Cesar and Maicon will manage to return for the FIFA World Club Cup, and two veteran players like them should be able provide some cover for Inter at the back. Do you think that Rafa manage to right the ship at Inter Milan? What if Inter loses to Werder Bremen, and then has a poor display in the FIFA World Club Cup? Would it be time for him to go? Share your comments below!
