After destroying last season’s Scudetto winners, Inter Milan will continue their hunt for Serie A title when they host Udinese on Saturday night.
Inter Milan will be looking to keep hold of their spot at the top in Serie A when they welcome Udinese to San Siro on Saturday.
The Nerazzurri have shown no signs of a hangover following their Champions League final disappointment to Manchester City last season, losing just one of their 19 matches this term. And they find themselves at the summit of Serie A, two points ahead of old foes Juventus, having crushed Napoli 3-0 down south.
Inter survived a threatening Juventus-Benfica-Napoli Bermuda Triangle test with just about flying colours. But now, they must ensure that their hard work does not go to waste against bogey side Udinese.
The Zebrette are a bit closer to the relegation line than they would like, currently sitting 16th in Serie A, as they still await a second league victory this season, having drawn no fewer than nine times home and away.
They have not been great at seeing out their advantage in games, letting victory slip through their fingers last time out, as they led 2-0 and then 3-2 against lowly Hellas Verona but still failed to take all three points.
Team News and Tactics
Inter Milan
Inter Milan are setting the pace in Serie A. But they are grappling with injuries as they balance their domestic expectations with Champions League exploits. They are in the midst of a full-blown injury crisis, with Dutch duo Denzel Dumfries and Stefan de Vrij now sidelined.
Although the Nerazzurri have a deep enough squad to certainly weather a few injury absences, the issue is the way that the injuries are piling up in one specific area of the pitch: defence. Benjamin Pavard (knee) is already out with an injury, and the Frenchman won’t be back until the match against Lazio later this month at the earliest.
Matteo Darmian, who can also deputise for Dumfries at right wing-back, has been the first-choice option on the right of the back-three alongside Francesco Acerbi in the former Bayern Munich defender’s absence, while Carlos Augusto was required to deputise for de Vrij at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
This means Juan Cuadrado is the only viable first-choice replacement for Dumfries despite his fitness issues earlier this season, whereas the marauding wing-back Federico Dimarco could continue to man the opposite flank. Alessandro Bastoni (calf) should return to the squad, but this game may come too soon for him to start from the outset.
In midfield, Hakan Calhanoglu will sit at the base. Henrikh Mkhitaryan should operate a bit on the left side, where he can utilise the width provided by Dimarco. Nicolo Barella could keep his spot as a right-sided midfielder. Inter will almost certainly look to Lautaro Martinez to carry the goal-scoring burden again, while his partner-in-crime, Marcus Thuram, has been directly involved in 11 goals in Serie A this season.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Sommer; Darmian, Acerbi, Augusto; Cuadrado, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
Udinese
Slovenian centre-back Jaka Bijol has been ruled out until 2024 by a stress fracture of his left foot, so ex-Watford defender Christian Kabasele should continue to deputise for him in the back-three alongside Nehuen Perez and Joao Ferreira.
Gerard Deulofeu and Brenner remain unavailable due to long-term injuries, so with his forward options limited, manager Gabriele Cioffi should keep faith in Lorenzo Lucca, whose brace against Hellas Verona last Sunday took his tally to four Serie A goals this term.
Florian Thauvin and Isaac Success are the other viable options should they overcome their respective knocks to return to the bench. Marco Silvestri will start in goal. Walace will hold the fort in midfield alongside Lazar Samardzic and Martin Payero in the middle of the park.
The trio will need to be aggressive and smart to deny Calhanoglu from picking up his passes. Festy Ebosele should keep his place on the right flank of Udinese’s 3-5-1-1 formation, with former Bournemouth speedster Jordan Zemura manning the opposite flank.
Probable Lineup (3-5-1-1): Silvestri; Ferreira, Kabasele, Perez; Ebosele, Samardzic, Walace, Payero, Zemura; Pereyra; Lucca
Key Stats
- Inter Milan have won four of their last five matches against Udinese.
- Inter have lost just once in their 19 matches this season.
- Udinese have won only one of their last 18 Serie A matches.
- Inter have won seven of their nine assignments this season.
- Inter skipper Lautaro Martinez (13) has netted more times in Serie A this term than Saturday’s opponents, Udinese (12).
Player to Watch
Lautaro Martinez
Lautaro Martinez has enjoyed a spectacular start to the season. The 26-year-old has already found the back of the net a whopping fifteen times across all competitions. And goals are far from the only thing that the Argentine World Cup winner brings to the team.
With his link-up play and defensive work rate, Martinez is the player who sets the tone and leads the team from the front. That is a big part of why the former Racing Club forward wears the captain’s armband and will look to propel his side to yet another victory here.
Prediction
Inter Milan 2-0 Udinese
Although Inter’s makeshift defence could make things trickier at the back, they will likely fly out of the blocks with intensity at the other end of the pitch, led by the deadly duo of Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram.
What’s more, Udinese have managed just one win in their last 18 league matches, suggesting that Saturday’s hosts should have no trouble picking up a crucial three points to continue their bid to lift the Scudetto for the first time since 2021.