UEFA Champions League: Inter Milan Pulls Off an Incredible Comeback to Draw 3-3 with Benfica

In a thrilling Champions League Group D match on Wednesday, Inter Milan rallied from a 3-0 deficit to earn a 3-3 draw with Benfica, thanks to three goals in the second half. The match began with a hat-trick for the hosts, Joao Mario.

After seven encounters in major European competition, Benfica had not defeated the Italians until Inter rallied for the first time, setting a record for comebacks in the Champions League.

Real Sociedad and Inter, who had already advanced to the round of 16, are tied on 11 points, while Benfica, which sits bottom of the group with one point and three behind Salzburg in third place, are at the bottom.

On December 12, Inter will play their last group game against Real Sociedad, which Simone Inzaghi’s team has to win in order to top the group. In the other game, Benfica will play Salzburg in hopes of securing a Europa League berth.

“I’m incredibly pleased with how the squad responded in the second half. We came very close to taking home the trophy, Inzaghi told UEFA.com.

We had to approach the field differently in the first half since we were aware of our opponents’ ability.

“We spoke during the break, made some changes, and in the second half, we played with an entirely different spirit.”

Five minutes later, Joao Mario of Benfica broke the tie with a first-time goal following Casper Tengstedt’s header for the former Inter player.

Eight minutes later, he took advantage of an ineffective clearing attempt by the Inter defense to double the lead. In the 34th minute, he completed his hat-trick by heading home a cross from close range.

Following Gareth Bale, who accomplished the feat with Tottenham Hotspur in 2010, Joao Mario became only the second player to score a hat-trick against Inter in the Champions League.

Inter found it difficult to get into the game, and their first opportunity came when Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin stopped Marko Arnautovic in a one-on-one situation.

Six minutes into the second half, Arnautovic did manage to bring one back for Inter, and seven minutes later, Davide Frattesi scored another goal for the visitors with a well placed volley.

After 72 minutes, Alexis Sanchez sealed the victory from the penalty spot after Marcus Thuram was tripped by Nicolas Otamendi.

In the closing minutes, Antonio Silva was sent off for a late tackle on Nicolo Barella, reducing Benfica to 10 men.

Then, in stoppage time, Inter came dangerously close to winning when Barella’s strong long-range shot struck the post.

Joao Mario said, “It’s difficult to explain, to find the words after the first half we had then what happened in the second.”

It’s true that we made a few blunders tonight, but certain details were always working against us. It’s difficult to see why anyone would have predicted the game’s outcome after such a disappointing first half.