Important clash against Inter motivates everybody

German Champions Bayern Munich and Italian powerhouse Inter are already through to the first knockout phase of the champions League. However, Inter’s rise from the ashes, as they collected 9 points out of 9 in the last three games after losing the first two in the group, combined with a slight drop in form of Bayern who won their first three matches and drew the last two, means Inter have the chance to finish top of the group if they win in Munich. It would be a miraculous turnaround, considering that after Inter’s 2-0 home defeat to Bayern on matchday 2 they were bottom with 0 points and Bayern were on top with 6, and Inter were actually close to elimination.

It's interesting to see that since then Inter have managed to find their balance and after that defeat they won 13 games out of 15 in all competitions, and are currently on a run of 11 consecutive wins, an impressive streak by anyone’s standards. In fact, the current Inter team is even more star-studded than usual, but this season they seem to have found that balance and consistency to actually end up with important silverware at season’s end.

As for Makaay's team, Bayern, they have been unusually inconsistent in the Bundesliga and are currently in fourth place, although just three points below league leaders Werder Bremen and Schalke 04. Perhaps after winning two straight league titles motivations lie elsewhere for the red club, who have already lost 18 points in their first 15 Bundesliga games. However it doesn’t seem as if they have enough quality to go really far in the Champions League, although the 2-0 win in Milan against Inter was obviously impressive, and it was also the only time Inter have lost at home this season. But they were also somewhat lucky as Inter had a bit of an off day and saw Ibrahimovic get sent off for a second yellow in the second half and also Grosso in the final part of the encounter.

That's why we can say that Inter will be very motivated to avenge that loss and leapfrog Bayern to the top of Group B. Whether that is such a positive thing, considering the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Manchester United would then probably be among Inter’s possible opponents in the next round. But it’s pride and prestige that is at stake more than anything in this clash, and they will also want to continue in their impressive winning run.