Preview: Inter Milan vs Napoli - prediction, team news, lineups

Going toe to toe in Serie A’s Sunday night contest, title rivals Inter Milan and Napoli will meet for a major showdown at San Siro.

While the Scudetto holders prevailed when the teams met in Naples earlier this season, Inter lead their southern counterparts by four points in the standings.

Match preview

With six straight league wins since losing the Derby della Madonnina, in-form Inter have responded well to their latest defeat against AC Milan.

The Nerazzurri may have slipped up in both the Champions League and Supercoppa Italiana, but they have been flawless in Italy’s top flight for several weeks.

After starting 2026 by beating Bologna, Cristian Chivu’s side saw off his former club Parma on Wednesday evening, when Marcus Thuram and Federico Dimarco were both on the scoresheet.

Victory was capped off by Thuram’s second strike in as many games, and Inter boast the league's most potent attack by far, scoring 11 more goals than closest challengers Milan.

Having posted 14 wins and four losses in Serie A, they lead their city rivals by three points in a tight title race, with defending champions Napoli trailing by four.

Questions remain over their resilience in big matches - and few come much bigger than Sunday’s - but the Nerazzurri are well placed to reclaim the Scudetto as this term’s midpoint approaches.

At San Siro, they have been particularly impressive, recording seven wins from nine league fixtures and scoring at least twice in all of those victories.

Also unbeaten in eight straight home games against Napoli, their most recent defeat in this fixture dates back to April 2017.

Yet, Napoli fans will point to an ongoing four-game streak without losing to Inter, who they memorably pipped to the Italian title last season.

Antonio Conte’s side also triumphed in this term’s reverse fixture, winning 3-1 at Stadio Maradona in October, and the ex-Inter coach will be desperate to repeat that result.

Napoli slipped further behind in midweek, when they had to fight back for a draw versus Hellas Verona: second-half strikes by Scott McTominay and Giovanni Di Lorenzo salvaged a point and maintained a long unbeaten run on home turf.

That setback followed a fine sequence of four straight wins without conceding, which had kept them in the race for first place and led to more silverware in the Supercoppa.

Now trailing both Milan clubs in a fascinating scrap for Serie A supremacy, with Juventus and Roma still close behind, Napoli need to stop their deficit from growing even further.

Consecutive 2-0 victories against Cremonese and Lazio recently improved a rather weak away record, but Conte’s men must face the ultimate test this weekend.

Inter Milan Serie A form:

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Inter Milan form (all competitions):

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Napoli Serie A form:

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Napoli form (all competitions):

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Team News

Inter’s injury list is starting to clear up, with Denzel Dumfries their only major absentee for Sunday’s game, albeit Davide Frattesi remains a doubt.

Matteo Darmian and Andy Diouf have both resumed full training, but they will make the bench at best, as several regular starters return.

Having been rested in Parma, Thuram, Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolo Barella are all expected to feature in Chivu’s starting XI, and ex-Napoli man Piotr Zielinski could join them.

Thuram is set to partner club captain Lautaro Martinez up front: the latter has previously scored four Serie A goals against Napoli, but none in the last eight league meetings.

Meanwhile, Napoli star McTominay has found the net twice in three games against the Nerazzurri, and he will start in an injury-hit midfield.

Kevin De Bruyne, Frank Anguissa and Billy Gilmour are still unavailable, in addition to ex-Inter striker Romelu Lukaku; top scorer Rasmus Hojlund will continue to lead the visitors' attack.

Brazilian winger David Neres is also a major doubt, but reserve wing-back Pasquale Mazzocchi can return after serving a suspension.

Inter Milan possible starting lineup:

Sommer; Bisseck, Akanji, Bastoni; Henrique, Barella, Calhanoglu, Zielinski, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez

Napoli possible starting lineup:

Milinkovic-Savic; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno; Politano, Lobotka, McTominay, Spinazzola; Elmas, Lang; Hojlund

We say: Inter Milan 2-1 Napoli

Inter can finally get over the line in a head-to-head clash with one of their main rivals, having failed to do so for several months now.

Though Napoli are still formidable at their very best, inconsistency has crept into their game - and the champions' away record is far from impressive.

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