Lionel Messi the 'icing' but Luciano Spalletti wary of Barcelona's whole cake

David Cooper - Writer 17:48 05/11/2018
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  • Lionel Messi.

    Lionel Messi may be the ‘icing on the cake’ for Barcelona but Inter Milan have already sampled what they can do without him.

    And Nerazzurri boss Luciano Spalletti is wary that, no matter how big a part the Argentine maestro plays at the San Siro on Tuesday, his side faces far bigger problems than just one man.

    “Messi is the icing on the cake. His is the shirt that children who dream of being footballers ask for,” said Spalletti, “but Barcelona have shown that even without him, they still have the mentality to develop their game, which is what makes the difference.

    “It’s a worry for anyone if Messi plays, but the attitude doesn’t change.

    “We’re facing one of the strongest clubs in the world in any case. We need to be better in our reading of the game, but we’re going to mark space, not men.”

    Messi is set for an earlier than expected return after breaking his forearm last month, but without him, Barca have won four on the bounce including a comfortable 2-0 victory over Inter at the Nou Camp.

    The Blaugrana need only a draw to seal qualification but their hosts are also in good shape to reach the round of 16, as a win would do it with two games to spare from a group including Tottenham and PSV.

    At the very least, Spalletti wants to use the San Siro tie as a proving ground.

    “It’s the right time to show what we’re worth,” said Spalletti, whose side are coming off a seven-match winning streak in Serie A in which they are in second.

    “We’ve always said we can play against anyone, and that still holds true.

    “The latest results reinforce that and this will be a good opportunity to see if we really can play on a par with Barcelona, who represent the highest level of difficulty in football.

    “In the first game we weren’t able to keep the ball after winning it back, which meant we couldn’t reverse the trend of the game.”

    Inter struggled to find Icardi at the Nou Camp but could be boosted by the return of Belgian midfielder Radja Nainggolan, who scored off the bench in a 5-0 thumping of Genoa on the weekend.

    “He has to be evaluated. We’ll know more after training,” added Spalletti.

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