Champions League: Inter in trouble; a major loss against Real Madrid

The new Champions League season kicks off Tuesday evening. The action kicks off at 6:45 p.m. with Club Brugge vs. Aston Villa and AEK Athens vs. LASK Linz, followed at 9:00 p.m. by a spectacular lineup featuring Porto vs. Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund vs. Villarreal, Lille vs. Betis, and Real Madrid vs. Inter. For the match against the Blancos, Cristian Chivu won’t be able to count on Federico Dimarco.

The Nerazzurri’s star winger suffered a minor sprain to his left knee in the last-minute victory over Napoli. Medical tests did not reveal any specific issues, but Inter’s medical staff decided not to take any risks: Dimarco will not travel to Spain but will remain in Milan to avoid further complications.

Roberto Carlos recently spoke to Sky Sport specifically about Federico Dimarco. The Brazilian legend had nothing but praise for the 1997-born player: “He’s a tremendous left-back. I can only congratulate him on the incredible season he’s had; he embodies what a modern fullback is all about. I’m very pleased to talk about him because he really reminds me a lot of my own playing style—my speed—and he’s a super-intelligent player.”

Ahead of the match against Inter, José Mourinho sought to lighten the mood with a joke: “Tomorrow, even though we have three players suspended, it’s still 11 against 11. It’ll be tough for us in midfield—maybe an Italian put together the schedule…” said the Special One with a smile.