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Nearly man? Pressure mounts on Cuper as Inter faces ValenciaPosted: Tuesday April 08, 2003 8:39 AMMILAN (Reuters) -- Inter Milan coach Hector Cuper meets his old club Valencia in the Champions League quarterfinal, first leg Wednesday under mounting pressure because of his team's faltering Serie A title bid. Cuper was labelled a 'nearly man' in some quarters after his Valencia side lost the 2000 and 2001 Champions League finals and Inter squandered a chance to win the Italian title on the final day of last season. There was an echo of the suicidal 4-2 loss to Lazio last May in the way Inter gave up a two-goal lead in the last seven minutes to draw 3-3 with AS Roma on Sunday. With the Valencia game followed by the Milan derby Saturday, Inter's season and Cuper's future may depend on two positive results. If the likeable coach needed any reminding of that, Italian newspapers speculated Tuesday about likely replacements for the Argentine should his team falter. With Juventus now five points clear of Inter in Serie A, the Champions League may be the Milan club's best hope of providing its success-starved president Massimo Moratti with the silverware he craves. "It is another game, another competition. There is no five points difference in the Champions League," said Cuper, who has mixed news on the injury front. Uruguayan striker Alvaro Recoba has a painful foot injury and missed training Monday, but Marco Materazzi returns to the heart of the defense alongside Fabio Cannavaro with Ivan Cordoba likely to switch to left back. Hernan Crespo, who has scored nine goals in eight Champions League appearances this season but is just returning to fitness, is likely to start from the bench should Recoba recover. Playing cautiously Valencia has a reputation for cautious tactics away from home but it has ruled out playing for a draw in the first leg. "We'll be going there to win," said Spanish international winger Vicente. "We know how difficult it is to win away to an Italian team but that will be the objective, to give ourselves a cushion for the return. "There's no chance of us playing for a draw." Miguel Angel Angulo said the side would go into the game with thoughts of revenge after Inter knocked them out of last season's UEFA Cup. "This is game is not just important because it's in the quarterfinals of the Champions League," said Angulo. "We also have to think about the fact that they knocked us out of Europe last year and we have to try to do the same to them. The best way to forget last season's defeat will be to beat them at the San Siro." Full back Curro Torres and Argentine winger Kily Gonzalez are on the long-term injury list, while Mauricio Pellegrino's suspension means Carlos Marchena partnering Roberto Ayala in central defense. Coach Rafa Benitez has no new injury worries, though, and he welcomes back midfielder Ruben Baraja from suspension. That is likely to mean Norwegian striker John Carew, who scored both goals in the 2-1 win over Arsenal that clinched Valencia's quarterfinal place, playing as a lone striker ahead of a five-man midfield led by Pablo Aimar. Inter Milan v Valencia -- StatboxWednesday, April 9, KO 1845 GMT, San Siro, Milan. Champions League quarter-final, first leg. Head-to-head record:
Previous meetings:
Inter Milan:
Valencia:
Champions League results 2002-03
Notes: Inter's home form is questionable with only two victories in their last five Champions League games at the San Siro. They have a tendency to fare badly against Spanish opposition too, failing to beat their last three visitors from Spain, including Barcelona this year and Valencia in last year's UEFA Cup quarter-finals. But they did go on to knock Valencia out of that competition, which should give them a psychological edge. Valencia have an impressive unbeaten away record in the Champions League this season and won on their last visit to Italy, beating AS Roma 1-0. But that was their first ever victory in Italy and they have a generally poor record against Italian clubs. Their 0-3 home defeat to Roma was a real aberration which has spoiled an otherwise almost perfect European season. Inter's record v Spanish clubs: P31 W10 D8 L13 F36 A48
Probable teams: Inter: 1-Francesco Toldo; 4-Javier Zanetti, 23-Marco Materazzi, 13-Fabio Cannavaro, 2-Ivan Cordoba; 22-Buruk Okan (or 7-Sergio Conceicao), 6-Cristiano Zanetti, 14-Luigi Di Biagio, 5-Belozoglu Emre; 32-Christian Vieri, 20-Alvaro Recoba Valencia: 1-Santiago Canizares; 3-Anthony Reveillere, 4-Roberto Ayala, 12-Carlos Marchena, 15-Amedeo Carboni; 19-Francisco Rufete, 6-David Albelda, 8-Ruban Baraja, 21-Pablo Aimar, 14-Vicente; 7-John Carew Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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