The eyes of Italian football will be firmly fixed on the San Siro this Sunday as Serie A heavyweights Inter Milan and Juventus renew their fierce rivalry in the latest edition of the Derby d’Italia.
Inter have claimed two championships and triumphed over Juventus in both the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa since Juventus’s long-standing success came to an end in 2021. Heading into this latest encounter, Simone Inzaghi’s side has lost only one of their last 19 home matches in Serie A, with that sole defeat coming against city rivals AC Milan in September. Since then, they have secured five consecutive victories.
Most recently, Inter achieved a dramatic Champions League win against Young Boys, following an opening draw at Manchester City and a convincing 4-0 victory over Red Star Belgrade. Overall, they have lost just once in 11 matches this season and are coming off a 1-0 win against Roma, with captain Lautaro Martinez scoring the decisive goal.
Inzaghi will be pleased with his team’s defensive performance, having kept consecutive clean sheets after struggling with goal concessions earlier in the season. However, they still average one more goal conceded per game than Juventus.
As they approach Sunday’s match, Inter has won two of their last four league encounters against Juventus at home, a notable improvement compared to their previous 11 meetings.
On the other hand, Juventus has faced challenges since their period of dominance waned, managing only two wins from six encounters against Inter in Serie A. Despite this, they arrive at San Siro as the only unbeaten team this season. The last time Juventus maintained such a record after eight rounds was in 2019 when they ultimately won the Scudetto.
Following their recent victory over Lazio, where they conceded just one league goal so far this season, Juventus briefly topped the Serie A table before being surpassed by Napoli. New head coach Thiago Motta has revitalized a squad that has faced difficulties in recent years.
Juventus have taken seven points from nine available away from home after previously enduring an eight-match winless streak on the road. Remarkably, they are the only team across Europe’s top five leagues yet to concede a goal while playing away.
However, Motta experienced his first setback with a 1-0 loss to Stuttgart in the Champions League. Now, he is eager to test his skills against Inzaghi as he prepares for this crucial Derby d’Italia clash.
Team News
After all three players came off the bench to contribute to Inter’s late winner in Switzerland, Federico Dimarco, Lautaro Martinez, and Marcus Thuram will all return to the starting lineup on Sunday, alongside Alessandro Bastoni.
Dimarco’s replacement, Carlos Augusto, suffered a muscle strain during the week, which means he joins deep-lying playmaker Hakan Calhanoglu and veteran center-back Francesco Acerbi on the sidelines.
However, midfielders Kristjan Asllani and Piotr Zielinski have recovered from their injuries and are expected to be included on the bench.
On the other hand, Juventus may be without Douglas Luiz, who withdrew from warm-ups against Stuttgart due to a thigh issue. Additionally, summer signings Teun Koopmeiners (rib) and Nico Gonzalez (thigh) remain unavailable.
First-choice goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio returns after serving a UEFA suspension in the Champions League. Meanwhile, no changes are anticipated in the attacking front: Turkish teenager Kenan Yildiz and on-loan winger Francisco Conceicao are set to support Dusan Vlahovic up front.
Expected Starting XIs
Inter: Sommer; Pavard, De Vrij, Bastoni; Darmian, Frattesi, Barella, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
Juventus: Di Gregorio; Cambiaso, Kalulu, Gatti, Cabal; McKennie, Locatelli, Fagioli; Conceicao, Vlahovic, Yildiz
Match Prediction
While the Nerazzurri are expected to dominate this fixture and boast the superior attacking lineup and midfield options, the Bianconeri have shown themselves capable of causing an upset in difficult circumstances. A surprise might be on the cards, given the long-standing rivalry between the two, and we’ll stick our necks out and suggest a Juve victory.
Prediction: Inter 1-2 Juventus
