Slumping Inter Milan Face Uphill Battle Against Barcelona In Semi-finals

Inter Milan approach their Champions League semi-final showdown against Barcelona in deep trouble, as a costly late-season slump threatens to leave them empty-handed.

Since reaching the last four, Simone Inzaghis side have suffered three consecutive defeats without scoring a single goal, a collapse that has seen them surrender a three-point advantage to Napoli in Serie A and crash out of the Italian Cup following a humbling 3-0 derby defeat to AC Milan.

The timing could not be worse for Inter, who now face a daunting trip to a buoyant Barcelona on Wednesday. Their recent form - a 1-0 loss to Roma being the latest blow - has highlighted a side fatigued and lacking creative spark.

The atmosphere at San Siro on Sunday was a far cry from the electric scenes that greeted Inter's quarter-final triumph over Bayern Munich just two weeks ago.

"We deserved more and created chances but lacked sharpness," said Inzaghi. "We need to find our energy from within, both mentally and physically."