Sixteen points. That is the target indicated by La Gazzetta dello Sport for Inter to secure direct qualification to the Champions League round of 16, after their debut defeat at the Bernabeu against Real Madrid. Chivu‘s team is called to give an immediate response, starting with the match against Club Brugge at San Siro.
“One match is gone and it was lost, in Madrid against Real. There are seven left and there’s nothing to figure out, if the goal is direct qualification to the round of 16: Inter must beat Bruges tonight at San Siro and collect as many points as possible in the next three rounds, against Shakhtar, Feyenoord, and Stuttgart. Because then they will have to face Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool and will have Slovan Bratislava as a backup card on the eighth and final matchday,” explains the Gazzetta.
The reference to last season is telling: in the 2025-26 Champions League, the eighth spot for direct qualification was claimed by Manchester City with 16 points, a tally also reached by Barcelona, Sporting, and Chelsea. The Nerazzurri stopped at 15, with five wins and three losses, falling short of the threshold.
“If you use this standard, there are no doubts: Inter must win the five seemingly easy matches and pick up at least a draw between Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool. And then the current negative streak must be erased, the three consecutive defeats, the two against Bodo in February, in the 2025-26 playoffs, and the recent slip at the Bernabeu,” adds the Gazzetta. The schedule offers some leeway, but no further missteps are allowed.
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