UEFA Champions League semi-finals: What to look out for in Wednesday's first leg

Barcelona will look to knock the wind out of Inter's sails when the teams meet at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys to kick off their UEFA Champions League semi-final.

UEFA.com previews all the action ahead of the first leg on Wednesday 30 April.

Kick-off time is 21:00 CET.

Wednesday 30 April

Barcelona vs Inter

Times have been relatively lean for Barcelona in recent years, and fans will need no reminding that Real Madrid have won five Champions League titles since the Blaugrana's most recent success in 2014/15. However, in their first season under German boss Hansi Flick they have reached their first Champions League semi-final since 2018/19, with an exciting young squad, and the significant striking talents of 36-year-old Robert Lewandowski and 28-year-old Brazilian Raphinha.

Their progress past Dortmund in the quarter-finals was relatively serene, but Flick will not be underestimating Inter as he aims for a place in the final. "What the team has achieved in recent weeks is phenomenal," he said after the Dortmund decider. "We're now one step further, but we're still a long way from the end."

Barcelona have had very much the better of these sides' 12 previous Champions League meetings: W6 D4 L2. However, Inter can take comfort from having come out on top in the most consequential of those encounters; José Mourinho's Nerazzurri beat the Catalan side 3-2 on aggregate in the semi-finals en route to their 2009/10 final triumph against Bayern.

Simone Inzaghi's current vintage have something of the resilience of the Mourinho era; they do not necessarily score that many (they have hit 19 so far in this campaign, compared to Barcelona's 37) but their defensive resolve has ensured they tend to make their goals count, conceding just five over the course of the campaign.

Moreover, in Lautaro Martínez they have a goalscorer in exceptional continental form – the Argentinian has scored in his last five Champions League fixtures and is the first player to score more than 20 goals for Inter in Europe's top club competition.

After discovering his side would be playing Barcelona in the semis, Martínez said: "It will be an important tie against a great opponent; in the Champions League they have a lot of history." The challenge for his side will be to prove how little bearing those old glories have on the here and now.

Did you know: Barcelona could do with a first-leg lead; Inter are unbeaten in their last 15 Champions League home matches (W12 D3) since a 2-0 defeat against Bayern in the group stage in September 2022.

Where is the 2025 UEFA Champions League final being played?

UEFA via Getty Images

The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League final will take place at the Munich Football Arena on 31 May.