SWAPPED: Samuel Eto'o (left) of Inter greets Barcelona's Zlatan Ibrahimovic prior to Wednesday's Champions League action. (CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP/Getty Images)
Inter, who hasn’t won the European Cup since their back-to-back victories in 1964 and 1965, started their 2009 group stage campaign with the typical Italian defensive approach, as the visitors Barcelona took the game to them.
The game featured two of the best world-class strikers returning to face their former clubs. Barcelona’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Inter’s Samuel Eto’o swapped clubs in a high-profile transaction in the summer.
Ibrahimovic had the best chance of the two when he chested down a long pass and volleyed just over the net.
Barcelona moved the ball around fluidly, prodding Inter’s defense for weaknesses; however their final touch often let them down. The visitors’ shooting left a bit to be desired. Barcelona outshot Inter 15–9 but both teams had only three shots on target.
The game looked very one-sided because Barcelona dominated much of the possession. But Inter was always dangerous on the counter-attack with the speedy Eto’o. As smooth as Barcelona looked in their possession and attacks, Inter looked equally good in defense.
One point of controversy came after 73 minutes of play, when Barca was denied a penalty shot after Inter’s Dejan Stankovic handled the ball. The referee got it wrong on that occasion in an otherwise impeccable performance where he kept the game flowing with his sensible refereeing.
In an post-game interview Inter manager José Mourinho said, “I know this was a good game of football [soccer]—a tactical, physical and mental war. In the end it was a good result.”
The draw leaves Ukrainian team Dynamo Kiev topping Group F after they beat Russia’s Rubin Kazan 3–1.
English Teams
In Belgium, Arsenal prevented an embarrassing loss with a 3–2 victory over Standard Liege. Liege made their first appearance in the Champions League group stage, while Arsenal made its 12th.Liege could not have started the game any better as they went up 2–0 in the first five minutes.
The Gunners pulled one back after 45 minutes when Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner slid a tight-angled shot past the Liege goalkeeper.
In the 78th minute, Arsenal equalized amid controversy. Alex Song appeared to use his hand to direct the ball, from an offside position, in a goalmouth free-for-all. Thomas Vermaelen scrambled the ball home.
Finally, Eduardo scored the winner in the 81st minute. His silly back-heel pass led to Liege’s first goal but he made amends by re-directing a corner kick into the Liege goal.
Arsenal is tied with Olympiakos, who beat Alkmaar 1–0, atop Group H.
Liverpool came out on top 1–0 in a drab game against Hungarian team Debrecen. The Merseyside team usually plays better the stronger the opposition. A substandard Liverpool performance was the end product in a game that had almost no flair.
Liverpool’s hard working Dutch striker Dirk Kuyt put the Merseysiders ahead in first half added time when he poked home a rebound from a Fernando Torres shot.
Liverpool is tied with Lyon, who beat Fiorentina 1–0, atop Group E.
