Europa League match preview: Inter vs. Ludogorets

MILAN – After the 2-0 win in the first leg thanks to Christian Eriksen’s first goal for the Nerazzurri and Lukaku’s 14th away goal this season, Inter face Ludogorets once again in the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg behind closed doors at San Siro on Thursday 27 February at 21:00 CET.

PREVIOUS ENCOUNTERS AGAINST BULGARIAN TEAMS After the victory in Razgrad, Inter are unbeaten in six matches against Bulgarian opposition (three wins, three draws); and the last home game against a Bulgarian team was the 3-0 win against Etar in 1974 in the first round of the UEFA Cup thanks to Oriali’s goal and Boninsegna’s double. The Nerazzurri have only played Ukrainian opponents more times (eight) without losing.

LUKAKU’S NUMBERSThanks to his 95th minute penalty and his assist for Christian Eriksen in the first leg, Romelu Lukaku has taken part in more goals than any other Inter player in the Champions League and Europa League this season with six contributions (three goals and three assists). Between Everton and Inter, Romelu Lukaku has scored eight goals in the Europa League knockout phase, only three players have done better since 2014/15: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (10), Alexandre Lacazette (14) and Kevin Gameiro (16).

ONE-SIDED FIRST LEGInter kept a clean sheet against Ludogorets in Razgrad: in only two of their previous six Europa League knockout matches have the Nerazzurri not conceded in both the first and second leg; these were against Cluj in 2012/13 and Rapid Vienna 2018/19. Ludogorets only attempted one shot in the first leg against Inter. Overall, for Inter it was the first time in 15 years that they had not suffered more than one shot in a Champions League or Europa League match (excluding qualifiers).

(here are all the facts and figures about the match)

CURRENT FORM After their 6-0 win against Botev Vratsa in the league on 15 February and their home defeat against Inter, Ludogorets earned a 1-1 draw against Etar. After 22 matchdays in the league, Pavel Vrba’s team have gained 52 points from 15 wins and seven draws (scoring 37 and conceding nine) and they’re leading the league with a seven-point gap over second-placed Levski Sofia.

Inter’s last five official games:

Ludogorets 0-2 Inter (Europa League) Lazio 2-1 Inter Inter 0-1 Napoli (Coppa Italia) Inter 4-2 AC Milan Udinese 0-2 Inter

Ludogorets’ last five official games:

FK Etar 1-1 Ludogorets Ludogorets 0-2 Inter (Europa League) Ludogorets 6-0 Botev Vratsa Slavia Sofia 1-1 Ludogorets Ludogoret 1-1 Ferencvaros (Europa League)

CONTE’S COMMENTS“First and foremost, we have to qualify, because reaching the round of 16 is the most important objective. We’re starting with a good result from the first leg, but we know that all matches pose hidden dangers and the game starts again from 0-0, so we’ll have to play well with the necessary conviction and hunger to win.”

Read the Nerazzurri Coach’s interview

SUSPENSIONS AND THOSE WALKING THE TIGHTROPEInter have one player suspended and three walking the tightrope in their match against Ludogorets: Lautaro Martinez is suspended, while Diego Godin, Antonio Candreva and Nicolò Barella are all one booking away from suspension; Antonio Conte is also walking the tightrope. For Ludogorets, Anicet Abel is suspended while Cicinho is the only player close to suspension.

THE MATCH OFFICIALSDaniel Siebert will be the referee for the clash between Inter and Ludogorets. The German official will be assisted by Jan Seidel and Rafael Foltyn. The fourth official will be Sascha Stegemann. While the VAR officials will be Bastian Dankert and Christian Gittelmann.