Salzburg vs Inter Milan

Inter Milan head to the Red Bull Arena to take on Austrian powerhouse Red Bull Salzburg in an exciting summer friendly.

Severely crippled by the summer departures of Benjamin Sesko and Noah Okafor, compounded by the exit of back-to-back title-winning manager Matthias Jaissle, RB Salzburg seemed to be bracing themselves up for a difficult season. However, the perennial Austrian Bundesliga champions have enjoyed a flawless start to the 2022/23 campaign, winning all three competitive matches by an aggregate score of 11-0, including a 3-0 demolition of Tirol last time out. New boss Gerhard Struber can be more than pleased with his side’s second-half performances, with ‘Die Roten Bullen’ netting precisely three second-half goals in two of their three outings this term. However, the Austrian heavyweights have failed to impress in off-season friendlies, suffering three defeats in five games (W2), all of which came by 2+ goals ‘to nil.’

In the meantime, Inter Milan’s pre-season following a 1-0 heartache in last season’s Champions League showpiece fixture against Manchester City was off to a flying start as they thumped semi-professional side Pergolettese 10-0. Although a 1-1 draw against Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Nassr in their first high-profile friendly cast some doubt on the club’s ability to bounce back from a heartbreaking 2022/23 campaign, a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain last time out helped Simone Inzaghi’s side recover lost confidence. Excluding the abovementioned Champions League final, ‘I Nerazzurri’ have fared reasonably well on their recent travels, picking up eight wins in their last nine away matches (L1)! It’s worth noting that six of eight triumphs yielded a clean sheet.