After the bitter exit from the Champions League on Tuesday, now it is time for Inter to reset everything and start to face the reality of the Europa League, a competition that must be honored and, if possible, won.
After seeing the opponents the challenges seem to be anything but trivial. On Monday the draw of the final 16 will take place and Rome based newspaper Corriere dello Sport tries to outline what challenges could come for Inter: “In the last minute, in Leipzig, Rosenborg managed to eliminate a dangerous rival both for Spalletti and Ancelotti. In fact, it was the German team that eliminated Napoli from the round of 16 a year ago. Instead of Leipzig, behind Celtic qualified behind Salzburg.”
But there are many teams left that could pose a serious problem for Inter according to Corriere dello Sport: “A team to fear for the Italian teams, as is Shakhtar Donetsk, coached by the Brazilian Fonseca, who finished third in a very complicated group in the Champions League. Also to avoid, due to the tough atmosphere, are the two Turkish teams Fenerbache and Galatasaray.”
“However the third Turkish team, Besiktas, failed to qualify after losing at home against Malmo after a Quaresma red card. The Swedes finished second in their group. Then there is Sporting Lisbon who in the Portuguese league is trailing first placed Porto with two points and had a fairly comfortable ride finishing second behind Arsenal in their group” the Gazzetta continues.
In conclusion the newspaper states that: “The small Belarus club Bate Borisov also managed to get through after defeating Greek league leaders PAOK after a 3-1 win at home. French side Rennes managed to take the final step towards the final 16 after a 2-0 win against Astana thanks to their talent Ismaili Sarr and finished second in their group after Dynamo Kiev. Two other teams not to underestimate are Viktoria Plzen and Club Bruges, both of them coming from the UCL group stage.”
