Verdict: Draw
Best odds: 23/10
Bookmaker: 888sport
It could be argued that the clash between Juventus and Inter Milan is the biggest in Italian football these days. Regardless of anything else, it is the clash between a club that won the Scudetto nine times in a row and the club that finally beat them to it last season. It is a clash between the two clubs that have been crowned champions the most times, Juventus leading the way with 36 and Inter, with 19, moving just ahead of city rivals AC Milan.
It is a clash between teams set to face each other on Sunday evening at the Allianz Stadium in Turin, in what will be the 31st match of the Serie A season for the Old Lady, and the 30th for the Nerazzurri.
Juventus
Having lost the title to Inter last season, Juventus haven’t been this far away from winning it in at the start of April in a very long time. Nothing is decided right now, but there isn’t much time for them to close the seven-point gap to AC Milan at the top. Therefore, they will not be only hoping for a victory against Inter for themselves, they will also be hoping for Bologna to pull of a surprise against Milan at San Siro on Monday.
Juventus have suffered a great shock in the round of 16 of the Champions League. They were considered strong favourites against Villarreal, but after a draw in Spain in the first leg, they allowed themselves to get comprehensively beaten in Turin in the second.
Apart from that one match, though, Juventus won the remaining five of their last-six run. It began with a 2-3 win away to Empoli, and continued with a 0-1 win away to Fiorentina in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semifinal. Then they beat Spezia at home by 1-0, and Sampdoria away by 1-3, before Villarreal thrashed them 0-3. In the last match heading into the international break, they beat Salernitana at home by 2-0.
Team News
Massimiliano Allegri won’t be able to call upon left-back Luca Pellegrini, suspended for yellow card accumulation, which means Mattia De Sciglio is set to start with veterans Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, as well as Danilo, in the back line.
Denis Zakaria has recovered from a problem with the abductor muscle and should start alongside Manuel Locatelli in the middle of the park, with Adrien Rabiot and Juan Cuadrado out wide. Alvaro Morata could join Dusan Vlahovic in attack, but Paulo Dybala is certainly an option too. Alternatively, Allegri could opt to field all three of them at the expense of Cuadrado, and switch from 4-4-2 to some form of 4-3-3.
Inter Milan
As has been said, it was Inter who stripped Juventus of the Serie A title last season, and even though that was done under the supervision of Antonio Conte who had the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi at his disposal, Simone Inzaghi has done a very good job since taking over ahead of this campaign. Inter are a tactically mature team, full of quality throughout the squad, and the success they achieved last season certainly wasn’t a one-off.
With the final stretch of the season arguably starting now, the Nerazurri are in third place with six points less than city rivals AC Milan in the lead and three less than Napoli in second, but with a game in hand on both, just as they are on Juventus who are a point behind. The race will surely be an interesting one, right down to the final minutes of the final round.
Like Juventus, Inter ended their involvement in the Champions League in the round of 16 with the home-leg defeat proving fatal for their aspirations in this competition. Their opponent was, however, arguably more formidable – Liverpool, and the hard-fought victory Inter later achieved at Anfield proved fruitless.
The gap between Inter and Juventus was significantly wider until recently, and Inter’s (lack of) form recently is to blame for the Old Lady catching up. Their last-six run in all competitions consists of a goalless draw away to relegation-threatened Genoa, another against AC Milan in the Coppa semifinal first leg, a 5-0 thrashing of Salernitana at home, the 0-1 win away to Liverpool, a 1-1 draw away to Torino, and a 1-1 draw at home against Fiorentina going into the break.
Team News
Midfielder Marcelo Brozovic should return to the starting lineup following a calf injury which he has reportedly recovered from. Inzaghi has no players ruled out for this clash.
Milan Skriniar, Alessandro Bastoni and Stefan de Vrij should form the back line. Brozovic is likely to be joined by Nicolo Barella and Hakan Calhanoglu in midfield, flanked by Denzel Dumfries and Ivan Perisic. Alexis Sanchez will be hoping to start upfront, but Izaghi is more likely to pick Edin Dzeko and Lautaro Martinez ahead of the Chile international.
Conclusion
There is a strong chance we see Juventus and Inter meet again in the Coppa final. These two teams are finely balanced at the moment, and a share of the spoils seems the likeliest outcome on Sunday.
Verdict: Draw
Best odds: 23/10
Bookmaker: 888sport
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