Inter defeat adds to Italian misery

PARIS, Feb 24 (AFP): Italian football's Champions League fortunes suffered a further blow on Wednesday as holders Inter Milan could not stem the tide of home defeats as they went down 1-0 at the San Siro to the team they beat in last season's final Bayern Munich. Mario Gomez' last minute goal saw Inter join city rivals AC Milan and AS Roma in succumbing to home reverses in their Last 16 first leg ties and in real danger of seeing not one representative from Serie A in the last eight in a competition they once dominated. By contrast England could well have four of the last eight as Manchester United were held 0-0 away at French champions and France's only ever winners of the tournament Marseille in an instantly forgettable encounter. However, the result appeared to please both coaches, Marseille's young handler Didier Deschamps - who guided Monaco to a surprise final spot in 2004 - and United's legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who has two Champions League trophies to his credit.