Inter v Juventus: Match preview, team news and probable lineups

The Italian Serie A will witness an epic battle between old rivals Inter Milan and Juventus as they meet in the 180th Serie A Derby d’Italia on Sunday.

Inter Milan are on a high with a points lead in the standings over Juventus, who have fallen due to their points penalty. They have also been winning recent matches between the two.

The teams will meet again in the upcoming Coppa semi-finals, but first, Inter Milan looks to maintain their position and put a stop to Juventus’ hopes of finishing in the top four.

Inter Milan’s hopes of winning the Scudetto have dwindled following their recent 8th league defeat at the hands of Simone Inzaghi’s side.

Currently, Napoli holds the lead with an 18-point lead over Inter Milan. The Nerazzurri are hoping to maintain their second spot and stay ahead of Lazio and their city rivals AC Milan. Their victory in the Derby d’Italia would be a great boost for their Champions League qualification hopes.

In their last-16 tie, Inter Milan made it to the quarter-finals of this year’s Champions League after holding out for a goalless draw against Porto. Their next challenge is against Benfica in the quarter-finals.

Juventus, on the other hand, have been eliminated from the Champions League and are now in the Europa League. Dusan Vlahovic’s penalty gave Juventus the win against Freiburg and qualified them for the quarter-finals.

Juventus’ recent form is dominated by 1-0 wins, with Angel Di Maria being their brightest spark. He has been the key figure behind their successful run in the Europa League.

Juventus’ victory over Sampdoria has given them some hope of finishing in the top four, but they sit at the seventh spot with a few games remaining. They have not given up on the top four and are hoping to win the Derby d’Italia to put pressure on their faltering rivals.

Lautaro Martinez, who has scored four goals on home soil this season, will be leading the attack for Inter Milan. They will be missing some key players, including Milan Skriniar and Alessandro Bastoni, who are injured.

In contrast, Juventus has been consistent in midfield and has been scoring goals through their midfielders. Adrien Rabiot, who scored in November’s reverse fixture, will be the key player for Juventus. The match promises to be a thriller with a lot at stake for both teams.

Team news and probable lineups

Inzaghi may have to reshuffle his personnel at the back again, as Milan Skriniar suffered a recurrence of an ongoing back problem on Tuesday, while Alessandro Bastoni is now struggling with a muscular injury; Stefan de Vrij or Danilo D’Ambrosio may be called upon to deputise.

On the Juventus side, they are without Arkadiusz Milik and Paul Pogba who are still injured, while Leonardo Bonucci is on the list of players who will be used by Massimiliano Allegri.

Although Federico Chiesa and Angel Di Maria are expected to be on the bench first, it could give time to Matias Soulé to play behind Dusan Vlahovic because Fabio Miretti is also not 100% fit.

Moise Kean is absent as he has to miss this match due to the red card he received in the match between Juventus and Roma.

Inter Milan probable starting lineup: Onana; Darmian, De Vrij, Acerbi; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Martinez, Lukaku.

Juventus probable starting lineup: Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Rugani; De Sciglio, Fagioli, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Di Maria; Vlahovic.