Inter have the psychological advantage over Bayern after beating the Germans in the Champions League final last season, but we should still expect a very tight game at Giuseppe Meazza. Both sides have really raised their form lately and are eager to continue the good run of results.

11 out of 13 under Leonardo

The strange decision to appoint Rafa Benitez as the man to replace Jose Mourinho after what he has done at Liverpool came back to haunt Massimo Moratti as the Neroazzurri largely struggled in the first part of the season. They not only had problems in Serie A but were pretty disappointing in Europe as well, and after narrowly making it to the knockout stages, Inter were pitted against mighty Bayern. However, things have improved significantly after the Champions League draw was made as new boss Leonardo managed to stabilize the team and got them playing the way everyone expects them to. As a result, Inter won 11 out of next 13 games, thus closing the gap behind leader Milan in Serie A, as well as creating a great atmosphere before the Bayern game. After winning last nine games at home, Inter have got to be considered favourites in this clash.

Leonardo rested Wesley Sneijder, Lucio and Cambiasso against Cagliari and the trio should return to the starting line-up, while Walter Samuel and Diego Milito remain long-term worries.

Bayern showing signs of improvement

Following very successful last season in which Bayern won the Bundesliga title and reached Champions League final, the Bavarians were always going to struggle to repeat that result, but nobody thought they would have so many problems. Louis van Gaal’s side have been utterly disappointing on domestic stage and they have only recently climbed to the Champions League places, while the title defence will remain just a dream. In all fairness, numerous injuries to the playing squad were one of the reasons behind under-par performances, but that cannot be an excuse for the fact that Bayern have just 12 wins in 23 league games. After losing to Koln despite the two-goal lead, the Bavarians restored some of the confidence by winning their next two games, with the return of Robben and Ribery giving them a welcoming boost. However, with young Kraft in goal and midfielder Tymoschuk and Pranjic playing in defence, the visitors are likely to have problems containing players like Eto’o, Pandev and Pazzini.

Thomas Kraft and Mario Gomez are expected to start despite picking up injuries in the weekend’s victory over Mainz, meaning Ivica Olic is the only player on the sidelines at the moment.

Verdict

Inter have progressed a great deal under Leonardo as the Neroazzuri are very dangerous up front while their back line remains as strong as ever and I expect them to extend the winning run at home to ten games. Bayern have improved lately, but they still have several problematic positions in the side, which is something Inter will know how to exploit.

Our prediction: Home win

Odds: 2.30 (13/10)

Bookmaker: Bodog