Barcelona 2-0 Inter Milan match report: Champions League

Barcelona 2-0 Inter Milan: match report

Barcelona passed their first test post-Messi injury, maybe not with flying colours, but there wre plenty of important and convincing performances, and three points too. Inter Milan, who didn't really show up until the second half, made life difficult for Barcelona for spells in that second 45 but couldn't find the breakthrough.

Sin Messi, Barcelona started with Rafinha and he was playing on the right-hand side of a three-pronged attack. It was the attacker who got the opener after a lovely ball from Luis Suarez sent in from the right as the former Inter player placed home with his left foot.

Coutinho went closest after that with a free after he was bundled over just outside the penalty area. With no Messi, the Brazilian got the chance to take the free in a position where his teammate usually thrives. It hit the wall and went out for a corner just as the referee blew for full time. 

Inter made a change at the break and it worked. They replaced Candreva with Politano and he had two early chances with Ter Stegen saving the first and Politano's accuracy, or lack thereof, saving Barcelona on the second occasion.

That was mostly it from Inter as their aggressive pressing mixed with frustration started to get them into trouble. Luis Suarez was fouled a number of times in dangerous positions and the referee had to ensure he kept things from boiling over.

It wasn't until Arturo Vidal and Rakitic linked up before the Croatian found Alba inside the area to slot home that Barcelona could breathe a sigh of relief though. The first touch was sublime and it capped an excellent performance from the left-back.

With the game as good as settled and with Inter showing no signs of getting themselves back into it, Messi, who was in the stands with arm in sling, made his way out of the stand and down the tunnel. He had seen enough and Barcelona had done enough with another far sterner test coming on Sunday; the Clásico.

Barcelona vs Inter Milan: live match updates and commentary

Barcelona vs Inter Milan live online: preview

Barcelona have their first test since losing Lionel Messi to a broken arm on Sunday night. They play Inter Milan at the Camp Nou, the venue for their upcoming game against Real Madrid in LaLiga, in a curtain raiser and Champions League showdown against the Itailian giants. Kick-off from Barcelona is at 21:00 CET as Ernesto Valverde tries to maximise his side's qualities without his Argentinian superstar to call on.

Both sides on display on Wednesday night at the Camp Nou are unbeaten and it looks increasingly like it will be the pair vying for first place and a potentially easier path through the competition. The games at home and away for both sides will have a massive bearing on how the group looks at the end of the round and it starts in Barcelona on Wednesday night. Barcelona are leading LaLiga and coming off a good victory over Sevilla while Inter are keeping in touch in third and are coming off a win themselves at the weekend.

Ernesto Valverde will also have to contend with the absence of Samuel Umtiti and Thomas Vermaelen as his options are thread-bare at the back. The club's numbers without Messi are not great, however, and Inter will look to take advantage of their lack of dynamism without him in the number 10 spot. It also makes them unpredictable and could give Coutinho the onus to become a more central figure in the team. They will, however, have to keep an eye on fatigue with Real Madrid having an extra 24 hours to recover having played last night. Regardless of what they say, they will have one eye on that game on Sunday with the chance to send Real Madrid spiralling further into crisis with a win.

Inter, for their part, have just come away from their biggest derby where they beat AC Milan 1-0 thanks to a Mauro Icardi goal. They did lose Radja Nainggolan to an ankle injury half an hour into that game and his presence will be missed at the Camp Nou on Wednesday night. Icardi, the big name Argentinian on show on the night in Messi's absence, is upset he won't get to meet his compatriot because it's "nice to play against great footballers" but he says it does give Inter a chance to have a cut off Barcelona. "He's a big miss and it means we can go head to head [with Leo gone] because we have the qualities needed to take them on," Icardi said who is a former Barcelona youth team player.