Two of the main contenders for the Serie A crown clash in a crunch Derby d’Italia as Inter Milan host Juventus at the San Siro on Sunday.
Ahead of the game, it is actually the hosts who are sitting clear in the league standings, with Inter positioned in second. Meanwhile, Andrea Pirlo’s men are four points and two places behind, albeit with a game in hand, having won their last four league games. It goes without saying then that this game could go a long way in electing the destination of the Serie A crown.
Considering the recent history between the two sides however, Juventus will head to Milan in more of a confident mood. The Old Lady are undefeated in their last seven matches against Inter. They also now have the opportunity to win three consecutive matches against Inter in all competitions for the first time since 2012. Ahead of kick-off, Antonio Conte’s men are the favourites to claim the three points at odds of 7/5 with Betfair, whilst Juventus can be backed at 19/10. A draw is available at 5/2.
In what goes against the somewhat cliched perception of Serie A, there could well be goals between the two regardless of the result. Despite boasting the best defensive record in the league, Juventus have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last four league games, whilst both teams have scored in three of those. Meanwhile, Inter do not have a clean sheet in their last five games, conceding two goals in each of their last three league matches. Both teams to score this time around could well be a good bet then, sitting at a price of 1/2 with Paddy Power.
There are also plenty of clinical goalscorers on show in which to find the back of the net for their respective teams; namely Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku. The duo have 27 Serie A goals between them already this season. Ronaldo can be backed at a price of 10/3 with William Hill to score first, whilst the Belgian is just slightly behind at 4/1.
Whilst those two are likely to play and in fact start, Juventus have a handful of players certain to not make the match. Paulo Dybala is out through injury, whilst defender Alex Sandro, Juan Cuadrado and Matthijs de Ligt are all self-isolating having tested positive for COVID-19. Conte has a few injury worries too with Danilo D’Ambrosio, Andrea Pinamonti and Matias Vecino all ruled out but that should not affect his thinking in regards to his starting lineup.