Will FC Sheriff upset another European heavyweight?
At the hilltop festival, it’s still topsy-turvy in Group D of the Champions League as Sheriff Tiraspol, a debutant and glaring underdog, tops the table ahead of Real Madrid and Inter Milan. However, after starting with two wins, the men from the Republic of Moldova suffered their first defeat in a 3-1 loss in Lombardy.
Accordingly, the Nerazzurri are expected to be warned ahead of the second leg and will once again play the game against the surprise club in a serious manner. In the run-up to the match between Sheriff Tiraspol and Inter Milan, the odds are clearly in favour of the visitors.
However, the underdogs, who have nothing to lose, not only put in a strong performance in their opening 2-0 win over Shakhtyor Donetsk, but also won 2-1 against Real Madrid at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
The Moldovans have also scored at least one goal in all three group matches so far. In our eyes, the odds on Sheriff Tiraspol against Inter Milan are correspondingly good, with goals again coming from both sides.
Sheriff Tiraspol – Statistics & current form
As the first club from the Republic of Moldova, Sheriff Tiraspol qualified for the group stage of the Champions League this summer. The financially strong Zholto-chornyye (in German: die Gelb-Schwarzen), who were the underdogs, set out to make a big splash.
After winning their first two group matches against Shakhtyor Donetsk and Real Madrid, the Osy (the Wasps) suffered their first defeat on matchday three against Inter Milan, losing 3-1 at the San Siro.
Won 19 of last 23 competitive matches
In the Divizia Nationala, FC Sheriff are currently “only” in third place, but are only three points behind first place with three games less on their record. This is due to the fact that in the Moldovan league, weekend matches of the undisputed serial champions have been postponed time and again so that the Osy could concentrate on the qualifying matches for the Champions League group stage.
Overall, that plan has worked so far, as the 3-1 defeat at Inter Milan was the Zholto-chornyye’s only lost competitive match in their last 23 games (19 wins, three draws).
Only one defeat in their last twelve European competitive matches
Last weekend, Tiraspol secured a comfortable 2-0 away win at current leaders Petrocub. In twelve league games, Yuriy Vernydub’s men have conceded just four goals, while in the top flight they have conceded just four goals despite losing 3-1 at the San Siro.
The underdogs will now go into the return match with the Nerazzurri with a correspondingly high level of confidence. Considering that the Zholto-chornyye have lost only one of their last twelve European matches (eight wins, three draws), they could well be in with a chance. In any case, betting on the Moldovans to score a home goal against Inter Milan at Sheriff Tiraspol is under a good star.
Predicted line-up of Sheriff Tiraspol:
Celeadnic – Cristiano – Dulanto – Arboleda – Costanza – Thill – Addo – Bruno – Castaneda – Kolovos – Traoré
Last matches played by Sheriff Tiraspol:
National Division
10/31 2021 – CS Petrocub 0 – 2 FC Sheriff
10/23 2021 – FC Sheriff 2 – 0 FC Balti
Champions League Grp. D
10/19 2021 – Inter Milan 3 – 1 FC Sheriff
National Division
10/16 2021 – FC Sheriff 4 – 0 FC Sfintul Gheorghe
10/02 2021 – FC Milsami Orhei 0 – 1 FC Sheriff
Inter Milan – Statistics & current form
Inter Milan crowned themselves Italian champions for the 19th time in the club’s history this summer, breaking Juventus Torino’s national dominance. Antonio Conte, however, left the Nerazzurri with the title, as did many key players.
Nevertheless, the Lombardy showpiece club, which has also won the Cup of Henkel three times, is currently very good at keeping up despite the upheaval. Under Simone Inzaghi, they have only lost one of their first eleven league games at national level.
Despite strong start already seven points behind in Serie A
Despite a strong start, “La Beneamata” are already seven points behind Serie A’s top duo of Napoli and AC Milan, who are soaring in their own spheres. Both clubs picked up 31 of a possible 33 points, which makes this week all the more groundbreaking for the Nerazzurri.
After all, the Derby della Madonnina is on the agenda just four days after their first-ever visit to Moldova, when the gap to city rivals AC Milan could be reduced to four points. However, Inzaghi’s team cannot take it easy in Tiraspol. Third in Group D, the Lombards need a three-goal win in Moldova to overtake FC Sheriff.
Only lost one of last five CL away games
The 3:1 first leg win the week before last is not the only reason to be confident of a three-goal win in Transnistria. The Nerazzurri’s away record also reads positively overall. The Lombards have lost only one of their last five Champions League matches away from home (two wins, two draws).
Accordingly, the three-time Champions League winners travel to the Republic of Moldova as favourites.
Predicted Inter Milan line-up:
Handanovic – Dimarco – de Vrij – Skriniar – Vidal – Brozovic – Barrella – Perisic – Dumfries – Martínez – Dzeko
Last matches played by Inter Milan:
Serie A
10/31 2021 – Inter Milan 2 – 0 Udinese
10/27 2021 – Empoli 0 – 2 Inter Milan
10/24 2021 – Inter Milan 1 – 1 Juventus Turin
Champions League Grp. D
10/19 2021 – Inter Milan 3 – 1 FC Sheriff
Serie A
10/16 2021 – Lazio Roma 3 – 1 Inter Milan
Sheriff Tiraspol – Inter Milan Direct comparison / H2H record
The first leg the week before last was not only the only competitive match between the two teams so far. It was also the only competitive match ever played between a team from the Republic of Moldova and Italy. The Nerazzurri won 3:1 at home.
Sheriff Tiraspol – Inter Milan Tip
When it comes to Sheriff Tiraspol against Inter Milan, the prediction has to take into account that purely in terms of the squad, there are definitely worlds between the two clubs. The supposed football dwarf from Moldova has already impressed with victories against Donetsk and Madrid and has only lost one of its last twelve international matches. Nevertheless, the Nerazzurri are likely to be out of their depth once again.
Whereas betting on an away win for the Italians at low odds makes much more sense than betting on both teams to score. Not only has Sheriff FC scored in all three group matches so far, but the Nerazzurri in particular should be quite vulnerable with the upcoming Derby della Madonnina in mind.
