Seeking the crown of 'winter champions', Inter Milan host Hellas Verona as they conclude the first half of their Serie A campaign on Saturday.
One point at San Siro would see Inter top the table after 19 games, but the Nerazzurri will want to show no mercy against relegation-threatened visitors.
Match preview
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Though they ultimately missed out in both the Scudetto race and the Champions League final, Inter enjoyed a spectacular 2023, winning the most Serie A matches of any side (27); throughout Europe's top five leagues, only Manchester City (29) managed more.
Across all competitions - including the Coppa Italia, which they lifted in May - the Nerazzurri won 39 times, which was their best return for 18 years, so there is a lot for them to live up to this year.
In their final fixture of 2023, Simone Inzaghi's side visited Genoa, seeking to extend their lead at the top of Serie A; however, a 1-1 draw at Marassi saw their four-point advantage over nearest challengers Juventus cut to two.
With a vastly superior goal difference, Inter would still claim the unofficial title of 'Campioni d'Inverno' (winter champions) by picking up even one point this weekend, when Italy's top flight reaches its halfway stage.
Having stumbled following a four-match winning streak, though, they will be keen to re-impose their authority by beating visitors that simply crumble when arriving at San Siro.
After seeing off Roma, Frosinone, Udinese and Lecce, the Nerazzurri have won their last four league matches on Milanese soil without conceding a single goal, so Inzaghi will expect his men to extend their dominance over Hellas Verona on Saturday.
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In addition to suffering three consecutive losses without scoring against Inter over the past couple of seasons, Verona have been beaten 21 times and drawn 11 versus their second-city counterparts at San Siro, failing to win once.
Marco Baroni's men therefore make the short journey to Milan more in hope than expectation of pulling off an unlikely upset - particularly given their recent run of results.
Although they secured a crucial win over relegation rivals Cagliari just before Christmas - ending a four-month wait for success in Serie A - Hellas have gradually slipped down the standings, and a 1-0 home defeat to rock-bottom Salernitana last time out leaves them in serious trouble.
Only outside the drop zone on goal difference, the 17th-placed Scaligeri are faced with familiar concerns, as after surviving the drop last season via a relegation playoff, a lack of firepower is again undermining their aspirations of mid-table security.
Verona have scored the second-fewest goals in the top flight this term (15), only more than Empoli (10), and having failed to find the net in five of their last seven away matches, the odds on them prevailing this weekend are long.
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Team News
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As Inter captain Lautaro Martinez and wing-back Federico Dimarco are back in full training, both will be available to Simone Inzaghi for Saturday's early kickoff, perhaps prompting a change up front. Should Martinez return to the starting XI, Marko Arnautovic - who scored his first goal since returning to the club versus Genoa - would miss out.
Benjamin Pavard is also in contention, having recently made his first substitute appearance since suffering an injury in early November, but new signing Tajon Buchanan will not be eligible until against next week's game against Monza.
Therefore, Denzel Dumfries and Matteo Darmian will fight it out for a place on the hosts' right flank, with Dimarco - a former Verona loanee - replacing Carlos Augusto on the left.
Marco Baroni, meanwhile, may have relatively few injuries to concern him, but since the transfer window opened Isak Hien has already left for Atalanta BC, Martin Hongla is set to join Granada, and Filippo Terracciano could be bound for AC Milan.
Belgian forward Cyril Ngonge, who is Verona's leading scorer with five goals from 17 games this season, has also attracted plenty of interest but should still start on the right wing, in support of veteran striker Milan Djuric.
After serving a suspension last week, Ondrej Duda returns to the Gialloblu's midfield, most likely in place of Hongla.
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
Hellas Verona possible starting lineup:
Montipo; Tchatchoua, Dawidowicz, Magnani, Doig; Duda, Folorunsho; Ngonge, Suslov, Lazovic; Djuric
We say: Inter Milan 3-0 Hellas Verona
Recent history and current form are both in Inter's favour ahead of their Saturday lunchtime meeting with lowly Verona, who lack punch in attack and are flimsy at the back. Therefore, the Scudetto favourites should summarily take care of business.
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