Parma are in big problems after losing three of their last four league games, with Ducali now needing to beat mighty Inter in order to remain above the relegation zone. The Neroazzurri suffered a disappointing exit from the Champions League, so they will be looking to make amends by winning this clash.

Parma on the downtrend

Parma had a poor start to the season, but they showed a massive improvement midway through the league campaign and it looked as though they would even manage to enter the race for the European places. However, the Ducali suffered a big dip in form in the second part of the season, as a result of which they are now fighting for their lives. The team are playing without any confidence, as witnessed by the fact they won just 2 out of last 15 games, with the home defeat to bottom-placed Bari clearly a sign that Parma are in problems. Franco Colomba was brought to replace Pasquale Marino but the change hasn’t had the desired effect as Parma easily lost to Lazio, thus slipping even closer to the relegation zone. Seeing that the Ducali picked up just two points from last five home games, everything suggests that they will have problems against wounded Inter.

Hernan Crespo, Ze Eduardo, Raffaele Palladino and Fernando Marques remain sidelined, which only adds to the problems.

Inter still hurting

Inter suffered a dip in form in the worst possible stage of the season, as it ended up costing them the place in the Champions League semis as well as the good position in the Serie A title race. Following the Champions League exit, the Neroazzurri will try to catch Milan in the remaining six rounds, and to do that they have to win all their games and hope that their bitter rivals will slip up a couple of times. It won’t be easy to recover from the 7:3 aggregate defeat to Schalke, but Inter are a very experienced team and they still have to be considered favourites against sorry Parma. Boss Leonardo will try to freshen up his team with a couple of new players, but there will not be big changes to the starting line-up, that’s for sure. Before losing to Milan and Schalke, Inter have won three out of previous four away games.

Leonardo will have full squad to choose from, with Cambiasso and Pazzini expected to replace Motta and Milito in the starting line-up.

Verdict

Parma are in all sorts of problems at the moment and they don’t look capable of stopping Inter from winning this game, especially as the hosts have some important missings. Inter boss Leonardo will be looking for a response from his players following the Champions League exit and the Neroazzurri should be able to pick up all the points from Ennio Tardini.

Our prediction: Away win

Odds: 1.86 (43/50)

Bookmaker: Betfair