When the Champions League draw was made in October, it seemed inconceivable to imagine Group B favourites Real Madrid and Inter Milan would be sat bottom and third respectively after the first two matchdays.
However, that’s the reality heading into Tuesday’s encounter at Estadio Alfredo di Stefano with both sides facing off in the first of potentially mouthwatering contests either side of the international break.
Buried amid the major storyline, where the clashes between the giants could either make or mar their immediate future in Europe’s premier club competition, is Achraf Hakimi facing off against old friends, with the first game seeing him return to the Spanish capital for the first time since departing for Milan.
Admittedly, Tuesday night’s meeting won’t be at Santiago Bernabeu and fans won't be in attendance in Valdebebas, still, a part of Hakimi would relish going up against his old side. Departing Los Blancos on a two-year loan to Borussia Dortmund was meant to complete the wide defender's development at the top level.
The talent that emerged in 2017/18 grew exponentially in North Rhine-Westphalia and the feeling was that Zinedine Zidane would empower the Moroccan upon his return to Madrid, particularly after an amazing 2019/20 season where he became one of the accomplished full-backs in Europe.
This was the dream for Hakimi, too, with the North African being a product of the Real academy. However, Zidane refusing to promise the 21-year-old a first-team spot, the presence of Dani Carvajal and the apparent preference for Alvaro Odriozola — who spent the second half of 19/20 at Bayern Munich — meant the African wideman wasn’t guaranteed a spot in the team.
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For those who thrive on schadenfreude, the recent troubles of the 1998 World Cup winner to find at right-back in recent games — which included natural left-back Ferland Mendy moonlighting on the opposite flank vs Shakhtar Donetsk — might lead to questions over the sale of the former Dortmund man. Easy to say in hindsight.
In fairness, Hakimi’s qualities, especially going forward, meant he was always going to be marketable despite the coronavirus’ impact on clubs’ finances...and so it proved.
A switch to Inter to play under the passionate Antonio Conte seemed to be the right fit for everyone involved given the Italian manager’s inclination to utilise a 3-5-2. Hakimi was set to be a beneficiary of his new coach’s extreme dependence on wing-backs in the build-up and attacking phase, and he’d shown at Dortmund with his underlying numbers why he could be the Serie A team’s most-important arrival.
Without question, the turbo-charged 21-year-old has had a profound impact in Inter’s season so far, even though results deserted them in October. The continuing frustration for Conte wouldn’t be in his team’s general performances domestically and on the continent but in their growing pattern to be profligate up top and then let in cheap goals at the back, an oversimplification of their recent run of one win in six matches.
This was the case again in Saturday’s 2-2 draw vs Parma, where Hakimi was somewhat culpable in the two areas of growing concern for the Nerazzurri boss. The wing-back failed to convert two huge headed chances in both halves and his natural inclination to push forward was exposed for Gervinho’s first goal seconds into the second half.
Inter’s dominance on the evening saw them rack up 25 attempts to Parma’s five, edge the xG 3.05 to 0.76 and miss a plethora of chances, only to rely on a late Ivan Perisic header to level. For a side tipped to end Juventus’ dominance in Italy, their persistent inability to put teams away and let in avoidable goals has seen them fall five points behind rivals AC Milan after only six games.
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It’s been the story of their season so far and broadly speaking since Conte took charge last year. Thus, after exiting the Champions League at the group stage previously, the Italian coach is in danger of having the ‘not good enough in Europe’ trope regurgitated if they’re eliminated yet again.
That makes getting a result in one or both of their meetings with Real imperative, but this comes with the known caveat that Zidane’s side are in the same boat having suffered a shock 3-2 defeat by Shakhtar before fighting back from two down to secure a 2-2 draw with Borussia Monchengladbach last week.
Despite the tricky nature of the draw, the expectation was for the meeting between these clubs to decide who comes out on top of the group. Yet, after two rounds of games, one of them looks in danger of exiting early if the next 180 minutes of European action ends badly in their meetings and indeed if, for instance, Gladbach and Shakhtar get a win apiece in their head-to-head.
Having said that, Inter’s performances, on the whole, this season have been better than the Spanish outfit’s despite the absence of results.
Regardless, the expected absence of Romelu Lukaku leaves them without their most-potent attacker, while the presence of Sergio Ramos, aura and personality of Karim Benzema and return of Eden Hazard mean the hosts will back themselves for a win.
It’ll be up to players like Hakimi to step up in the Belgium superstar’s absence, and the Moroccan won’t lack the motivation to thrive on Tuesday night.
In a sense, both Conte and the wing-back have a point to prove at Estadio Alfredo di Stefano: the manager, in silencing critics who question his European pedigree, while the wide defender seeks to show the most successful side on the continent what they’re missing out on as Inter look to show they can be equal to or greater than the sum of their parts.
