Dejan Stankovic believes Inter can beat Barcelona just like in 2010, that Mauro Icardi is a regret for the Blaugrana, but reveals what went wrong for Philippe Coutinho.
The Champions League clash kicks off at Camp Nou at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).
There are several reunions, as Icardi grew up in the Barcelona youth academy before moving to Sampdoria as a teenager, while Coutinho never delivered on his potential at Inter, flourishing instead for Liverpool.
Dejan Stankovic believes Inter can beat Barcelona just like in 2010, that Mauro Icardi is a regret for the Blaugrana, but reveals what went wrong for Philippe Coutinho.
The Champions League clash kicks off at Camp Nou at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).
There are several reunions, as Icardi grew up in the Barcelona youth academy before moving to Sampdoria as a teenager, while Coutinho never delivered on his potential at Inter, flourishing instead for Liverpool.
“Coutinho was still a kid when he was with us. He’d play two or three games and then get injured. I don’t know if it was the climate, the city or what, but he did really well at Liverpool and deserved this move to Barcelona,” former midfielder Stankovic told Sky Sport Italia.
“Icardi can represent a big regret for Barcelona and hopefully he’ll score. He is still young, but remarkably mature and shows an incredibly professional attitude. He can get much stronger and can go a very long way.”
Inter were defeated 1-0 at Camp Nou in the semi-final on their way to the 2010 Treble, but went through thanks to the 3-1 first leg victory.
“I was suspended for the second leg and it was so tough to sit there, watching my teammates fight like lions and not be able to help. I couldn’t take it for the final 15 minutes, so I went to the locker room and tried just checking my phone, but time never seemed to pass. When I heard the cheer for the disallowed goal, I had a coronary! When the final whistle blew, there was immense joy.
“That Barcelona tended to go 1-0 up and it’d end 3-0 or 4-0, but our team, along with Jose Mourinho and the fans, were able to hang on in there.
“I remember Jose asked us for one goal difference at San Siro. ‘It can even end 5-4, but we need a one-goal difference to go to Barcelona.’ In the end, we needed two.
“At that time, Barcelona had Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi, a scary midfield. We faced them in the group stage and were embarrassed, we just chased the ball and never got near it. We prepared the semi-final by studying every tiny detail.
“I saw a similar approach in training with Inter last week, as they have that desire to win, the same we had with Mourinho. Slowly, they are building a solid core of the team.
“This Inter side is more than capable of fighting it out with Barcelona, it’s not impossible and I believe in their chances.”