Leipzig in false Champions League position, says Inter´s Inzaghi

RB Leipzig’s lowly position in the Champions League standings does not reflect their performances, said Inter coach Simone Inzaghi ahead of their clash at San Siro on Tuesday.

Inter sit fifth in the 36-team group phase, having collected an impressive 10 points through four games, winning three in a row after starting with a draw at Manchester City.

Leipzig, meanwhile, are one of five teams still without a point.

If they lose on Tuesday, they will equal their longest-ever losing run in the competition, having lost five straight between February and October 2021 – two under Julian Nagelsmann and three under Jesse Marsch.

“Leipzig are a team that has been in the Champions League for six years and until Saturday they had the best defence in the Bundesliga,” Inzaghi told a press conference on Monday.

“In the four Champions League matches they have played they deserved more, they have only clearly lost against Celtic.

“They have a coach [Marco Rose] who has been there for many years, they have many quality players and the ranking does not reflect their performances in Europe. We know that we are facing a strong team”.

Leipzig, who are third in the Bundesliga after losing 4-3 at Hoffenheim on Saturday, kicked off their European campaign with a 2-1 loss at Atletico Madrid and home defeats by Juventus (3-2) and Liverpool (1-0). They lost 3-1 at Celtic last time out.

Inter, meanwhile, are unbeaten in 11 home matches in the competition (nine wins, two draws), keeping nine clean sheets during that run. Inzaghi, however, says they have further gears to find.

“We always have to work harder, this positive moment is the best to push and improve even more,” Inzaghi said, reflecting on Saturday’s 5-0 win at Verona in Serie A.

“We always try to see where we can do better. On Saturday in Verona, we scored five goals in one half, but we saw where we made some mistakes that could have cost us dearly.

“Last year it was one thing, this year it’s different. Both in the league and in the Champions League there are many pitfalls.”

Inter, who won the Scudetto last season and were Champions League runners-up in 2023, are third in Serie A, one point behind Napoli and level with second-placed Atalanta.

Midfielder Davide Frattesi is likely to miss the Leipzig game but Inzaghi will hope to have midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu and forward Lautaro Martinez available.

“Frattesi has been having a little problem with his ankle for 10 days. It will have to be evaluated. Yesterday it gave him some problems and today he didn’t feel at his best,” Inzaghi said.

“Calhanoglu and Lautaro were absent in Verona but had two good training sessions yesterday and today. Tomorrow morning, I will evaluate the lineup.”

Calhanoglu was substituted at half-time in Turkiye’s match against Wales on November 16 with a muscle issue, while Martinez, who scored in Argentina’s World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay and Peru, fell sick as he returned from international duty.