As far as Shalke goes we have got a slight advantage that they have recently changed their manager though we still need to be careful as this is the Champions league quarter final and every team at this stage have proved they are worthy of being there, the biggest threat posed to Inter will be Shalke's Raul who has got a huge amount of Champions league experience with his former team Real Madrid and everyone knows he is capable of scoring plenty of goals but if Inter can perform the way we know they can then this should be a fairly easy game for us.
Squad selection
Goalkeepers:
1 Julio Cesar, 12 Luca Castellazzi, 21 Paolo Orlandoni;
Defenders:
2 Ivan Cordoba, 4 Javier Zanetti, 13 Maicon, 15 Andrea Ranocchia, 23 Marco Materazzi, 26 Cristian Chivu, 55 Yuto Nagatomo;
Midfielders:
5 Dejan Stankovic, 8 Thiago Motta, 10 Wesley Sneijder, 14 Houssine Kharja, 17 MacDonald Mariga, 19 Esteban Cambiasso, 20 Joel Obi, 29 Philippe Coutinho;
Forwards:
9 Samuel Eto'o, 22 Diego Milito, 27 Goran Pandev.
In my opinion Leonardo needs to be playing a 4-1-2-1-2 formation with Maicon, Lucio, Ranocchia & Nagatomo in defense, Cambiasso in the defensive midfield, Zanetti on the right & Kharja on the left, with Sneijder just behind Eto'o & Milito up front but if the last few games are anything to go by Leo will play a formation that will leave the back exposed.
Press conference
Leonardo
"Schalke 04 have reached the quarter-finals, and even if they aren't doing so well in the league, we all know how enthusiastic they are and this will make them difficult to play against," said Leonardo in the press conference on the eve of the UEFA Champions League 2010/11 quarter-final between Inter and Schalke 04, scheduled for tomorrow evening at the Stadio Meazza in Milan's San Siro district, kicking off at 20:45.
Leonardo was then asked about Raul: "He's a player with an incredible history and, judging by his decision to change, he's taken up such a different challenge with so much enthusiasm. He's one of the symbols of Schalke's great cavalcade."Losing the derby? A defeat never comes about for one reason alone, just as, I don't think, a tactical problem can lead to going a goal down after 47 seconds. I respect everyone's opinion here, but there are many factors to be considered: for example in the first half we had three chances to their two, but the goal never came. There are always a lot of variables. If you're losing and your team are geared to attack, you continue to attack. However there are a lot of aspects to be taken into consideration. And I don't think it's a question of temperament or psychological approach. And besides, I still think this is a team that can adapt itself to play in many different styles. What are my feelings after the defeat? There's the bitter taste that comes with losing, but this team have always responded positively and I'm convinced they will do the same this time," said the Nerazzurri coach, commenting on Saturday's defeat.
A question on Diego Milito's return to the team was inevitable: "Milito has spent a long time recovering from injury and he has reached the stage where he has to undergo further preparatory training, just like in summer. I think he's at a good stage at the moment and is ready and able to put in a good performance.
"I've never won at home in the Champions League? These are different types of matches. Statistics don't count for much here. I don't analyse things like this because they have nothing to do with the games," replied the coach.
"Schalke have changed coach but I don't think their style of play will have changed much and they are playing well," was what Leonardo had to say about their opponents tomorrow.
"Having qualified in the way we did certainly gives us a boost because we showed that we never give up and we want to keep on doing that," added the coach recalling the victory against Bayern Munich.
"It's not that I think we are in the running to win everything; we are still in the running for everything. Losing one match doesn't change anything, otherwise we wouldn't even have got this far. This team have pride and that pride says they are there, always there and will take this competion on, in the knowledge that each game is going to be tough, just like it was last year," said Leonardo in conclusion.
Diego Milito
"Schalke 04 are a good team and we respect them. You don't get to the quarter-finals by being lucky and they won't be an easy team to play. But we want to play well tomorrow and win," said the Nerazzurri forward at the beginning of the press conference.
"I'm well psychologically and physically, too," added Milito. "I've got my fitness back, all that I'm missing now is match practice. But I'm eager and am glad to be back. The derby? We've put that behind us. We are only concentrating on tomorrow. We'll try to dictate play, as we always do, especially after losing a match. The team really want to play well this time. We don't have to prove anything to anyone. We've been in control up to now and we want to continue like that. What's the atmosphere like? It's good, we are geared up for this match and we know we can get through to the next round. We are inspired by our motivation and our tranquillity."
"It's been a difficult season for me and I've been plagued by injuries, but there are two months left to play and I hope to convert my anger into positive energy to score and to play well. Will I be scoring on the road to Wembley? What's important is to get there, that Inter get there, not that I do it with my goals," concludes Milito.
My Prediction
As always i'm going to predict the result and Inter's scorers for tonights game and i'm going to go for a 2-0 win for us with Milito & Eto'o scoring the goals
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