Inter Milan are on the verge of getting to their first final in European competition in 10 years and the manager of the team Antonio Conte will do anything to ensure that he leads the team to achieve that tonight when they face Shakhtar Donetsk in Europa League semi-finals in Dusseldorf, Germany.
The Italian side has been having an unprecedented last lap of the 2019-2020 season after a disappointing start of the season. Their push for the Italian Serie A title in the outgoing season showed the amount of fire Cote has ignited at the club. They lost the title to Juventus with just a point but failed to push beyond the group stage of the UEFA Champions League which landed them in the Europa League.
The only way they could summarize how much they have fought this season is to win the Europa League which they have been touted to be the favorite of the campaign. To do that, the club will bank on their best legs, Lautaro Martinez and Romelu Lukaku to deliver a first-class performance against Shakhtar Donetsk at 20:00 tonight.
On the other hand, Shakhtar Donetsk have also been having a kind of regeneration as they have been enjoying the best time in Europe since 2016. They also gave a good fight in the Ukraine Premier League as they won the league with 82 points, 23 points more than the second-placed Dynamo Kyiv. They only lost two matches throughout the season.
On the road to the Europa League semi-finals, the Ukrainian club has only drawn one match in 7 games. They have won every other match to maintain their unbeaten record in the tournament. The manager of Shakhtar Luis Castro will depend mostly on Junior Moraes to deliver the goals tonight.
Inter Milan respect Shakhtar Donetsk
Meanwhile, the manager of Inter Milan, Conte, has described Shakhtar Donetsk as his toughest opponent so far in the tournament. He could not hide his respect for Luis Castro’s led team but insisted that Inter Milan are prepared to face the Ukrainian team.
Inter Milan last won the league in 1998, eleven years before it was named Europa League; while Shakhtar Donetsk won it in 2008, which means that the Ukrainian side has fresher knowledge of how to win it. However, the current form of Inter Milan might make the difference tonight.
The winner of tonight’s game will face Spanish La Liga side, Sevilla that defeated Premier League side Manchester United 2-1 on Sunday night, August 16. The final of the competition will take place on Friday, August 21, 2020.
Team News – Inter Milan
Antonio Conte will be without his loanee, Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean is out with a muscular injury he sustained during training prior to tonight’s encounter. Matias Vecino may not be available for the match due to match fitness issues.
Inter Milan probable starting eleven:
Handanovic; Godin, De Vrij, Bastoni; D’Ambrosio, Barella, Brozovic, Gagliardini, Young; Martinez, Lukaku
Inter Milan Europa League form: WWWW
Inter Milan form (all competitions): DWWWWW
Team News – Shakhtar Donetsk
The manager of Shakhtar Donetsk Luis Castro has no injury worries as he has welcomed back Davit Khocholava to the squad after completing his ban but he might not stroll straight into the first eleven. This is so because Castro is likely to retain the squad that knocked out Basel from the competition.
Shakhtar Donetsk probable starting eleven:
Pyatov; Dodo, Krivtsov, Bondar, Matvyenko; Antonio, Stepanenko; Marlos, Patrick, Taison; Moraes
Shakhtar Donetsk Europa League form: WDWWW
Shakhtar Donetsk form (all competitions): WWWDWW
