Juventus host Inter Milan at the Allianz Stadium on Sunday night in a crucial match in the title race. A victory for the Old Lady would see them go above Inter into third place and potentially put them back in the hunt for the league crown. Inter have seen a poor run of recent league form with a single win in seven and a 10-point swing against their city rivals over that streak.
Juventus Form
Juve are 16 Serie A matches unbeaten going back to late November. Two league draws in February were followed by a satisfactory 1-1 draw at Villarreal in their Champions League last 16 first leg. They followed that result with four domestic victories in a row winning at Empoli (3-2) and Sampdoria (3-1) and 1-0 at home against Spezia.
In typical recent Juventus fashion, they bottled it in the Champions League and were beaten 3-0 at home by Villarreal in the second leg. They dominated the first half but conceded three late goals including two from the penalty spot. They beat Salernitana 2-0 in their last match as Paulo Dybala and Dusan Vlahovic got the goals.
Juventus Team News
Juventus are without Luca Pellegrini on the left due to suspension. The international break seems to have brought some good news as Alex Sandro and Denis Zakaria are on the verge of returning from injury to boost the squad. Vlahovic missed the FIFA break with a groin problem but is said to be fit to start this match.
Weston McKennie is out for the rest of the season due to an injury. Alvaro Morata is pushing for a recall after a sub outing in Juve’s last match. Danilo returns late from Brazil duty but should be able to drop back into right-back having covered in central midfield for the last match.
Juventus Motivation
The Old Lady are playing with confidence and a little more flair than usual under Allegri. For a few matches, he used Dybala and Morata on either side of Vlahovic in a front three. He has since returned to two strikers and more hard-working wide midfielders in Adrien Rabiot and Juan Cuadrado.
Juve will play to win and keep their slim title hopes alive but it won’t be an open, attacking setup at all in this match.
Inter Form
Internazionale have had a fine league season overall but it threatens to unravel if they keep dropping silly points. After beating Venezia in January, they sat four points clear at the top of the table with a game in hand. They have since won once in seven Serie A matches including losses to AC Milan and Sassuolo. They are now six points behind Milan, still with one fewer match played.
After the latter defeat, they are four unbeaten but with three draws. A 0-0 at Genoa was followed by thrashing bottom-placed Salernitana 5-0. They then won 1-0 at Anfield although it still saw the side eliminated 2-1 on aggregate by Liverpool in the Champions League. A 1-1 draw at Torino and a 1-1 home draw with Fiorentina followed as they twice needed to come from behind.
Inter Team News
Stefan de Vrij has missed recent matches at center-back but is now in full training ahead of this key match. Marcelo Brozovic has also returned after a calf problem and will hope to be fit enough to be in the starting XI.
Inter have a fully fit squad aside from that. Alexis Sanchez and Joaquin Correa give good impact sub-options in the attack. Robin Gosens is fit after injury and the former Atalanta left wingback could continue to be drip-fed minutes at Inter as he regains match fitness.
Inter Motivation
Inter needs a victory here. AC Milan hosts struggling Bologna on Monday and could increase their gap in the table if Simone Inzaghi’s side doesn’t win this one.
A defeat would see Juventus leapfrog them and possibly even open the door for Atalanta or Roma to push Inter for a spot in the top four. They won’t play defensively in this match but maybe a little less open than usual.
Key Stats
Juventus are unbeaten in 16 matches in Serie A (W11, D5)
Juve have seen under 2.5 goals in 7 of their last 9 Serie A matches
Juventus have kept 6 clean sheets in their last 8 home matches (Serie A)
Juve are 8 home Serie A matches unbeaten against Inter Milan (W6, D2)
Inter are unbeaten in 6 matches (all comps)(DDWWDD)
Inter are unbeaten in 9 away Serie A matches (D6, W3)
Inter have won 1 of their last 7 Serie A matches (LDLDWDD)
Verdict
This is expected to be a tight match with not many goals. Juve are in great form and have an excellent record in this fixture but Inter may have enough to avoid defeat.
Best Bet: Under 2.5 goals at 1.80
Alternative Bet: Juventus win at 2.80
Multiple Option: Draw/Juventus double chance + under 3.5 goals at 2.10
Correct Score Tip: Juventus 1-0 Inter Milan at 8.75