Former Inter and Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez feels that the Champions League clash will be a more evenly-matched affair than many are predicting.
Speaking to Rome-based newspaper Corriere dello Sport, the Spaniard who most recently coached Everton gave his thoughts on the round of sixteen tie between the Nerazzurri and the Reds.
Benitez has enjoyed a long career across several different countries, taking charge of several Premier League teams in addition to both the Nerazzurri and Napoli for spells in Serie A.
He is an admirer of both the current Inter and Liverpool teams, and their respective coaches Simone Inzaghi and Jurgen Klopp.
Benitez feels that there isn’t that much to split the two sides as they prepare to go head to head in the first leg for a place in the quarter-finals of Europe’s top competition in just a few days.
“Inter didn’t reach the second round by chance,” he pointed out, “they are a team that always knows what they’re doing on the pitch and are good at exploiting of the weaknesses of opponents.”
“Their 3-5-2 formation can create problems for team for teams that don’t they are used to facing them,” he added.
“On the other hand, however, you have Liverpool with their attacking 4-3-3 system,” he went on, “which makes aggression and intensity its biggest weapons.”
He looked ahead that “I don’t expect the two-legged tie to have a predictable outcome, but rather two engaging matches in which the team who controls the ball will win.”
“Both have the quality and technical ability to keep the ball and make their opponents run,” he explained.
Of the Nerazzurri’s recent form, Benitez said that “They lost to Milan because they switched off for three minutes and conceded two goals, but they had done everything to make the match their own and if they had won it wouldn’t have been undeserved.”
“Sometimes matches take a strange turn, and that’s what happened to the Nerazzurri in the derby,” he analzyed.
“Against Roma they played well in possession and returned to being as solid as they have been all season,” he continued.
“They have a strong and balanced team, thanks to my friend Piero [Ausilio, Inter Sporting Director] who has done great work,” he added. “Every now and then I hear from him and we always enjoy our talks.”
Benitez went on that “I like Simone Inzaghi a lot. He is a coach with clear ideas, who is always searching for ways to achieve his objectives within the game.”
“It happened with Lazio and is now happening with Inter,” he went on. “Coming in after Conte, who had won the Scudetto, was not easy, but he has done well to create harmony within the squad and above all to achieve great results.”
Of the Scudetto race, Benitez predicted that “Inter have shown great consistency, and, if they keep going like this, they have an excellent chance of winning the Scudetto because at the beginning of 2022 they’ve already faced tough opponents like Lazio, Atalanta, Milan and Napoli.”
“But this year Serie A is balanced and both Napoli and Milan have a chance,” he added.
And for the tie between Inter and Liverpool, he predicted that “Based the strength of the English league, I’ll say 51% Liverpool and 49% Inter, but it’s a more balanced matchup than many people think.”
