Pressing Issues

• Last season’s Serie A champions have won seven of their last eight, and are sitting second in Italy’s top division, while Mikel Arteta’s side will be seeking a bounce back after defeat at Newcastle United in the Premier League.
• Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard has been spotted in training ahead of their Champions League fixture in Milan; the man many consider the gunners’ most important player has been missing since picking up an injury on international duty in early September.
• How will Simone Inzaghi set out his side to mitigate Arsenal’s key man Bukayo Saka? Will Arsenal be able to cope with the Italian atmosphere and Inter’s possession heavy, defensively sound 3-5-2?

Tactical insight: key matchups, and will Ødegaard start?

Inter Milan

As the home side, Inter will be expected to hold possession (they have averaged 58% across all competitions this season), with wide centre-backs Benjamin Pavard and Alessandro Bastoni expected to orchestrate progression from the back for Inter – and Hakan Calhanoglou, who has found new form under Inzaghi’s leadership, is likely to be the beating heart of the side. He leads the team in both progressive passes and progressive carries.

Wide men Federico Dimarco and Man United’s former full-back Mateo Darmian are vital for the Nerazzurri. offering a balance of attacking support. One decisive matchup could be that of Saka against Dimarco down Inter’s left side. Dimarco will be determined to get forward, but will have to be wary due to Saka’s pace and ability on the counter-attack.

Inter will also look towards in-form Frenchman Marcus Thuram, whose attacking presence and athleticism has provided Inter seven goals in the Serie A this season. Despite Arsenal’s impressive away defensive record in 2024, he will fancy his chances against a side who are without a Premier League clean sheet since their north London derby win in mid-September.

Arsenal

The big question for Arsenal is whether or not their talisman Martin Ødegaard will start. He has been sorely missed by fans and players, and The Gunners have looked largely uninspiring without him. Having said that, given that he only returned to full training today (Tuesday), it is unlikely that medical staff will clear him to start. As a result, we will likely see a similar starting eleven to the players who saw defeat against Newcastle – although tweaks may be likely.

At St James’ Park in the Premier League, it was abundantly clear that Saka, despite his brilliance, needs some support. Arteta’s choice to start Thomas Partey at right-back and have him invert into central midfield when Arsenal had the ball, removed much of this support. It feels likely that the Spaniard will revert to a more proven Arsenal right side, and Ben White will regain his place at right-back, enabling Saka to receive some support, with Arsenal seeking to double up down their right side.

Fans will also be calling for 17-year-old youngster Ethan Nwaneri to receive a start, with the promising Englishman showing glimpses of his talent in Arsenal’s league cup victory at Preston last week. Arteta has received criticism for not putting enough trust in his young players, but it seems that he feels Nwaneri isn’t quite ready to be starting games at the top level – perhaps in favour of additional defensive stability.

Predictions: Odds and Outcomes

One thing can be said with absolute confidence: this game will be fascinating to watch from a tactical perspective, and is likely to be decided by extremely fine margins. The teams have played twice before in the UEFA Champions League, in the 2003/04 group stages: with each side taking an away victory.

At the time of writing, PaddyPower have Inter to win at 17/10, the draw at 11/5, and Arsenal at 13/8. The Gunners go in as slight favourites, but it will without doubt be a hard-fight if they are to win at San Siro.

It will likely be cagey, with both teams set out to mitigate threats of the other, and the result could well be decided by a moment of individual brilliance. Out of both sides, Saka would be the obvious candidate for such a moment.

Kick off is on Wednesday 6th November at 8pm GMT.