Inter Milan failed to repeat the success of their 2022/23 UEFA Champions League campaign as they lost as early as March in a clash against Atletico Madrid.
Though it came as a disappointment to all of the Nerazzurri fans, we actually believe that last season’s campaign was not unsuccessful – especially if you consider Inter’s UCL tactics that turned our beloved club into a genuine Champions League title contender.
Inter actually became a heavy favorite among football betting fans who know that the team is guaranteed to display some pretty amazing Champions League strategies.
In this blog article, we are going to analyze some of these tactics that became synonymous with the Milan-based club.
Defensive Solidity
We must start with the obvious since Inter’s defense proved to be rock-solid in the UCL and beyond. Thanks to the team’s back-three formation,
Inter conceded only five goals across the competition’s group stage. More importantly, three of those came in a single fireworks match against Benfica (3:3), but that was a pretty unusual match that does not take place too often.
Other than that, Inter actually conceded only two goals in seven matches thanks to their UCL defensive tactics. The back-three system (that sometimes switched to a back-five formation) gave our team a solid defensive base that seriously limited the opposition’s chances.
In this case, the whole crew could rely on superior players such as Milan Škrinjar and Stefan de Vrij, a pair of standout defenders who proved to possess enough knowledge as well as the skills needed to halt most attackers.
However, this tactic alone could not deliver the desired results without a few extra tricks.
Midfield Control & Transition
From our point of view, the true power of Inter lies in its combination of defensive maneuvers and midfield control. The whole midfield crew seems to be able to stop the opponent’s attacks before they even start turning into something more serious.
This is fairly easy when Simone Inzaghi can count on Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolò Barella, to name but a couple of midfielders.
Guys like these are able to do just about everything a coach could ask for from his midfielders – they can maintain possession whilst quickly transitioning from defense to attack. In other words, their tactical discipline and overall sturdiness often allowed Inter to dictate the tempo of the game.
This kind of midfield control is one of the more renowned Inter tactics, so much so that this Champions League midfield strategy turned the club into the punters’ favorite.
That’s because bettors know they can count on the team’s defense, which makes them prone to placing bets on the team not conceding a goal.
For instance, we noticed that many players in Canada place wagers on Inter’s matches via online casinos. They mainly do so by researching platforms like Gamblizard so as to discover gambling sites with the finest bonus deals for new visitors. In a way, this makes for a nice connection between midfield control and sports betting.
Effective Use of Wing-Backs
None of the above-mentioned strategies could work well without the corresponding wing-back tactics. Inter developed a concept that might as well be described as the UCL wing-back strategy that mainly relies on Denzel Dumfries and Federico Dimarco.
These two players were crucial for the overall performance because they worked both ways: defensively and offensively.
Inter’s wide play was critical because Dimarco and Dumfries were able to give the team extra width as well as many crossing opportunities. The stats say it all – Dimarco is currently one of the most valuable wing-backs in the UCL thanks to impressive in-game figures.
Counter-Attacking Prowess
Teams that defend well naturally excel at UCL quick transitions. This is the case with the Milan-based club since counter-attacking football became a symbol of Inter.
Today, every coach in the Champions League understands that the Inter’s counter-attack is the team’s most fierce tactic.
Here’s the deal – the squad contains a host of agile players who can use their speed and efficiency on the break.
After all, the team that can count on the Argentinian world champion Lautaro Martínez is destined to exploit open spaces and counter-attack easily. This actually helped the club score as many as eight fast-break goals last season.
Tactical Discipline and Flexibility
Inter UCL adaptability can also be seen through the team’s overall tactical flexibility. It feels like Simone Inzaghi’s tactics are designed to make the most of every player’s tactical discipline, so the team can stay as flexible as it gets throughout the entire 90 minutes of the match.
For example, this is how Inter managed to score a late goal against Red Bull Salzburg Austria in round four of the 2023/24 Champions League.
The idea was simple – the whole team must preserve the necessary tactical discipline for as long as it takes to make the opponent nervous enough to make a mistake.
And the mistake did happen in the 85th minute of the match when the Red Bull Salzburg defender used his hand to defend a shot, which resulted in a penalty kick.
Needless to say, Lautaro Martinez seized this chance to score a goal. This kind of discipline was what brought Inter to that much-needed away win.
Conclusion
With that said, we must note that Inter still lacked some luck to make it much further in the previous UCL season.
They lost in the penalty shoot-out against Atletico Madrid, which was a serious punch in the face after the UCL finals only one year prior to this.
However, it is also necessary to add that Inter proved to be a legitimate member of the European elite after decades of subpar results in international competitions.
That’s why we can’t wait to see what comes next in this year’s Champions League which will include a brand-new format.
