Having let two points slip through their fingers last weekend, Inter Milan aim to stay in touch with the Serie A leaders by beating 19th-placed Hellas Verona on Saturday.
The Nerazzurri fell 10 points adrift of top spot by conceding a stoppage-time equaliser at Monza, while their latest visitors to San Siro picked up just a second win of the season to move off the foot of the table.
Match preview
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Just days after closing the gap to first place by posting an impressive victory over previously unbeaten Napoli, last Saturday night, Inter were twice pegged back by regional rivals Monza in a 2-2 draw at Stadio Brianteo.
Under pressure from former Inter defender Luca Caldirola, a last-gasp own goal from Denzel Dumfries restricted the Nerazzurri to only one point; leaving them occupying fourth place in the table, just a game shy of Serie A's halfway point.
Still just three points behind both Juventus and Milan, the gap to leaders Napoli is now a more formidable 13, so Simone Inzaghi's men may ultimately seek glory in cup competitions this term.
Retaining the Coppa Italia is likely to be their best chance of lifting a trophy in the coming months, though they also remain in the hunt for a fourth continental title, as a last-16 Champions League tie with Porto still awaits.
Tuesday's domestic cup clash with Serie B side Parma almost ended in embarrassment for Inzaghi's inconsistent side, who only squeezed through to the quarter-finals by finally getting the better of the Gianluigi Buffon-inspired visitors at San Siro: Parma led until the 88th minute, when Lautaro Martinez equalised, before a Francesco Acerbi header edged Inter through in extra time.
Set for a sojourn to Saudi Arabia next week, where they will contest the Supercoppa Italiana with old foes Milan, before the Nerazzurri depart for Riyadh they tackle a team they have utterly dominated year after year: Inter are unbeaten in their last 22 Serie A meetings with Verona - a run including 18 wins and 50 goals scored at a rate of 2.3 per game.
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In fact, such has been their submission to Inter in years past, Verona's last win over Saturday's hosts was back in February 1992.
Hellas have also conceded goals in each of their last 12 Serie A away fixtures against them and last kept a clean sheet against the Nerazzurri at San Siro some 32 years ago. Most remarkably of all, the Scaligeri have never won a top-flight match versus Inter in Milan (20 losses; 11 draws).
Marco Zaffaroni's current side have, in fact, won only twice anywhere this season, after their second success of a dire 2022-23 campaign finally arrived at home to fellow strugglers Cremonese last time out.
Moving above their visitors in the process, Hellas went two goals up before half time thanks to an unlikely brace from Darko Lazovic and then held on for a vital 2-0 victory; they remain six points from safety, however.
Verona could now win successive Serie A matches and record consecutive clean sheets for the first time in over a year. They have failed to stop the opposition scoring in each of their last 31 away matches, though, so escaping San Siro unscathed will be a tall order this weekend.
Team News
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Several star names, such as Romelu Lukaku, Marcelo Brozovic, Nicolo Barella and Hakan Calhanoglu sat out Inter's midweek cup win as Simone Inzaghi rotated his squad, but those fit enough to return may feature on Saturday.
Amid a hectic schedule, Edin Dzeko and Milan Skriniar are most likely to be brought back into the starting XI after only appearing from the bench against Parma, while Matteo Darmian again contests a place on the right flank of Inzaghi's 3-5-2 formation with Denzel Dumfries.
Joaquin Correa is the man most likely to make way for Dzeko, who made his Serie A debut versus Verona in 2015 and has scored each of his four league goals against them in home matches - including one at San Siro last April.
The visitors, meanwhile, have fitness concerns over Marco Faraoni, Kevin Lasagna and Simone Verdi. Young striker Jayden Braaf - set to sign from Borussia Dortmund - is also expected to be unavailable.
After a rare win last time out, new boss Marco Zaffaroni is expected to name a similar team to that which saw off Cremonese, again featuring Monday's match-winner Darko Lazovic.
With his double at the Bentegodi, the versatile midfielder has already scored more goals than in all of last season (one in 34 games), having switched to a position in support of Verona's central striker, which should be Milan Djuric once again.
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Onana; Skriniar, Acerbi, Bastoni; Darmian, Gagliardini, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Martinez, Dzeko
Hellas Verona possible starting lineup:
Montipo; Dawidowicz, Hien, Ceccherini; Depaoli, Ilic, Tameze, Doig; Lazovic, Kallon; Djuric
We say: Inter Milan 3-0 Hellas Verona
While no side has scored more Serie A goals than Inter before half time this season (19), Verona have conceded the most during the second half (20). Such a combination suggests a fast start for the hosts - if being taken to extra time in midweek does not hinder them too much - and surrender by the Scaligeri after the break.
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Top tip
Jonathan O'Shea
