Inter v Liverpool preview
Inter head coach Cristian Chivu has called Mohamed Salah a “phenomenon” but remains wary of Liverpool despite the forward voicing his unhappiness at the club after their 3-3 draw at Leeds United on Saturday.
Salah said his relationship with head coach Arne Slot has disappeared during the Reds’ prolonged wretched run of form, with the reigning English champions 10 points off the pace in the Premier League, as well as suffering a 4-1 home defeat to PSV in their last European match on November 26.
“They have a team spirit in their DNA that has made them successful throughout the club’s history, albeit with ups and downs,” said Chivu, via Gazzetta.
“I knew [former manager Jurgen] Klopp’s Liverpool, and I know Slot’s… our opponents have many other resources that can cause us problems.”
In his first season in charge, Chivu’s team are a point behind Serie A leaders Napoli and fourth in the Champions League, although their perfect start to the league phase ended with a 2-1 defeat at Atletico Madrid on Matchday 5.
Thuram si prende sempre cura dei compagni 🫂🥹 pic.twitter.com/cjgYjx67RB
— Inter ⭐⭐ (@Inter) December 8, 2025
“We want to raise the bar, even if it’s not easy to maintain a high tempo every three days,” said the Romanian, whose side won 4-0 at home to Como on Saturday.
“Maturity is evident in understanding the moments of the game: when to push and when to control the game.
“You have to find a balance, which is part of a mentality. We’re not looking for proof of greatness, just points and consistency.
“The team deserves some credit regardless of the final result: we’ve held Italy’s flag high in Europe and made headlines by reaching the final twice in [the last] three years. That’s not a given.”
Inter Milan v Liverpool team news
Goalkeeper Raffaele Di Gennaro (wrist), defender or midfielder Matteo Darmian (muscular) and wideman Denzel Dumfries (ankle) are out for Inter, with defender Manuel Akanji a doubt because of flu.
Chivu suggested Francesco Acerbi is likely to play because the centre-back has a “physique that not everyone possesses”.
“He’s one of those who’s played the most minutes and, despite his age, can play every three days,” added Chivu.
“Denzel is working in the gym without putting too much strain on his ankle, but I don’t know when we’ll be able to have him back. Against Liverpool, no problem; I’ll play on the wing.”
Disgruntled forward Salah, who won the 2018/19 competition with Liverpool, has been left out of the visiting squad.
Salah, who top-scored as the Reds won last season’s Premier League but has netted five times in 18 games in 2025/26, suggested he had been “thrown under the bus” by the club.
Jeremie Frimpong has a hamstring injury and fellow full-back Conor Bradley will be suspended if the Northern Ireland captain is booked.
Inter v Liverpool predicted starting lineups
Inter starting XI: Yann Sommer; Manuel Akanji, Yann Bisseck, Alessandro Bastoni; Carlos Augusto, Nicolo Barella, Hakan Calhanoglu, Piotr Zielinski, Federico Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Marcus Thuram
Liverpool starting XI: Alisson Becker; Joe Gomez, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister; Dominik Szoboszlai, Florian Wirtz, Cody Gakpo; Hugo Ekitike
How to watch Inter v Liverpool: TV channel, live online stream
Inter vs Liverpool starts at 20:00 GMT (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT) on Tuesday and is being shown live in the UK on Amazon Prime Video.
Amazon have first pick of the Tuesday games, with all the other matches shown on TNT Sports. BBC Sport also has highlights rights.
A Prime Video membership is £8.99 per month or £95 per year paid annually, with a half-price offer for fans aged between 18 and 22.
Membership includes unlimited delivery on a huge selection of Amazon items and a range of other perks such as movies, series, documentaries and photo storage.
The dedicated Prime Video app allows fans to live-stream the game on a vast range of devices including smart TVs and gaming consoles.
Inter Milan v Liverpool stats
- Inter were the last Italian Champions League winners, Chivu starting for them in a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich in Madrid in 2010
- Only Arsenal (1) have conceded fewer than Inter (3) in this season’s competition
- They have won their last four group stage and league phase matches at home to English teams and are unbeaten in 18 Champions League home matches (W15 D3) since a 2-0 defeat to Bayern in the group stage in September 2022
- I Nerazzurri won 10 of their last 11 home matches during the initial stage (D1), conceding a total of two goals along the way
- Lautaro Martinez has scored in his last five home appearances for Inter in the competition, netting eight times in total
- Liverpool could become the second team to beat Inter three times at San Siro in the competition, emulating Bayern Munich
- They have five win in their last six games away to Italian clubs
- Cody Gakpo could make his 150th Liverpool appearance, having scored 46 goals since joining in January 2023
- The English side have won seven of their last nine away European fixtures
- This is the ninth successive season in which they have faced Italian opposition
