Atletico Madrid – Inter Milan: Atleti Steal It Against Inter At The Death (2-1)

Atletico Madrid edged Inter Milan 2-1 at the Metropolitano to go 12th in the Champions League table. A Julian Alvarez opener in the 9th minute was cancelled out by Piotr Zielinski in the 54th minute. However, a last minute header from Atleti captain Jose Maria Gimenez from a corner gave Atleti the vital three points in a tightly contested Champions League affair.

Tactical analysis and match report by Gaurav Krishnan.

A lot has changed for Inter since their Champions League final appearance against PSG last season. Simone Inzaghi guided Inter to two Champions League finals in three seasons, with Inter losing both in the end. However, with change comes fresh ideas and fresh impetus, and after Inzaghi departed for Saudi Arabian sands in the summer, Cristian Chivu, who served Inter as a player for several seasons, replaced the mercurial Italian manager, bringing in his passion for the club he so diligently played for, into the Inter dugout.

It’s not been exactly smooth sailing for Inter under Chivu; results have been a mixed bag under his management. The club find themselves in 4th place in Serie A albeit just three points behind leaders Roma. However, the tactical blueprint has remained from Inzaghi’s tenure with Inter’s 3-5-2 staying largely intact.

Meanwhile, for Atleti, Diego Simeone remains the astute and assured guiding force behind the club. This is their new iteration under Simeone and with the long-serving manager at the helm in the dugout for Atleti, they remain a force to contend with and a team that is notoriously difficult to beat. Domestically, Atleti find themselves slightly adrift again . . .