Blow for Inter Milan as Wesley Sneijder ruled out of clash with CSKA Moscow in Russia
Due to a muscle problem, Inter Milan playmaker Wesley Sneijder has been ruled out of Tuesday afternoon’s trip to Russia to face CSKA Moscow when the second round of Champions League group matches commence.
The Dutchman will be sorely missed in a match that the Italian giants can ill afford to lose, having been turned over by Trabzonspor in their opening match of the tournament on September 14. However, with the appointment of Claudio Ranieri came instant gains for the Nerazzurri as they won their first game of the season away to Bologna at the weekend.
There’s no doubt that this is a tricky encounter for the Serie A outfit, but the Beneamata have suffered just one defeat in their last seven visits to Russia in competitive matches, and CSKA have lost three of their six home games against Italian opposition. Indeed, the stats augur fairly well for Inter, and at just under 2-1 with Pinnacle I reckon they’re a good bet to earn three points from this fixture.
It’s not just about stats, of course. The victory against Bologna will have instilled some much-needed confidence into a side that has largely struggled to regain anything akin to the level of form they achieved when winning this competition during the 2009/10 campaign under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho. And, for all that doubts remain about the side’s resolve – and their resolve will be tested in the Olimpiyskiy stadion Luzhniki – to their credit Inter have qualified for the knockout stage of the Champions League in eight of the last nine seasons.
I’ll be surprised if this encounter produces many goals – a 1-0 or 2-1 verdict to the visitors is the most likely outcome in my opinion - but at the aforementioned odds backing the Italians in the full time result market looks the way to go.