Inter Milan travel to Genoa this weekend knowing that anything other than a victory could end their hopes of qualifying for the Europa League.
They are four points behind their opponents in the Serie A table, but due to the Rossoblu being denied a UEFA licence, a seventh-place finish will be enough to secure a European return.
Genoa
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Genoa have been one of the surprise packages in Serie A this season and with two games left to play they are sixth in the league table and above the Milan giants and their city rivals Sampdoria.
The Rossoblu have been in irresistible form of late and have claimed six wins from their previous eight games, with thumping victories over Torino and Atalanta BC in their last two outings.
However, despite all of their success on the pitch, they were dealt a major blow in midweek after being denied a licence to play in European competition next season
It was revealed that the club had missed a deadline to name a suitable stadium to play in, with their home ground in need of redevelopment work to meet UEFA standards.
The club will appeal the ruling, but they have admitted that their chances of reversing the decision are small. Parma, who were in the same situation last season, finished in sixth place but were denied entry into Europe.
If they do miss out on Europe, then some of their key players from this season could be leaving, with Iago Falque said to be wanted by a number of top clubs. The Spaniard has impressed with 13 league goals since his summer move from Tottenham Hotspur and he grabbed a memorable double in last weekend's 4-1 thrashing of Atalanta.
Recent form: LWWLWW
Inter Milan
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News of Genoa's exclusion from Europe will have been happily greeted by Inter Milan, but there is still plenty of work for the Nerazzurri to do in order to take their spot.
They are currently eighth in the league table and two points behind Sampdoria, who will now be granted the final qualifying berth for the Europa League.
It means that Inter need to win their final two games of the season and hope that the Blucerchiati fail to pick up any points, but Sinisa Mihajlovic's side will fancy their chances of beating Empoli and Parma in their remaining fixtures.
A finish inside the top seven would still be a disappointment for a club who expect to be competing for honours each season and had high hopes of getting back into the Champions League.
They initially struggled with a change of manager midway through the campaign, but Roberto Mancini looks to have added some consistency and last week's defeat against Juventus was their first loss in over two months.
There are expected to be a number of changes made to the squad during the summer and vice-president Javier Zanetti revealed earlier this week that Yaya Toure is in discussions over a move to Milan. Such a high-profile arrival would signal the club's intent and could be the catalyst to a number of other big-money summer signings.
Recent form: DWWDWL
Team News
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Genoa have no suspensions to worry about, but they are missing Diego Perotti, M'Baye Niang and Marco Borriello through injury.
Sebastien De Maio will be available after serving a ban and he should return to the back four.
Meanwhile, Hernanes is back for Inter after missing last week's defeat against Juventus and he is expected to replace Xherdan Shaqiri in the starting lineup.
However, Fredy Guarin could also miss out once again through injury, meaning that Mateo Kovacic is likely to retain his place in the midfield.
Genoa possible starting lineup:
Perin, De Maio, Burdisso, Roncaglia, Bergdich, Kucka, Bertolacci, Rincon, Lestienne, Pavoletti, Falque
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Handanovic, Jesus, Vidic, Ranocchia, D'Ambrosio, Brozovic, Medel, Kovacic, Hernanes, Palacio, Icardi
Head To Head
Inter Milan came out on top in this season's reverse fixture, as they earned a 3-1 win against Genoa at San Siro.
Genoa claimed a 1-0 victory in last season's match at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris thanks to Luca Antonelli's late strike.
However, that was their only win in their previous 19 matches against Inter Milan, with 12 of those games ending in defeat.
We say: Genoa 2-1 Inter Milan
Genoa will have been disappointed at the decision not to allow them into Europe, but they won't let it ruin what has been a great season. They have been playing some brilliant attacking football and we think that they can extend their winning run to three games against an unreliable Inter Milan side this weekend.
Alex Meyers
