Inter Milan will be looking to continue their excellent start to the 2019-20 Serie A campaign when they welcome Parma to San Siro on Saturday night.
Antonio Conte's side have won seven of their eight matches this term to sit second in the table behind Juventus, while Parma are eighth having won four and drawn four of their eight league fixtures thus far.
Match preview
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Inter are 18-time winners of Serie A, although the Milan giants have not actually lifted the league title since 2010. The Black and Blues claimed a runners-up spot in 2010-11 but have not posted higher than fourth since.
Fourth is actually where Inter have finished in three of the last four seasons, but there is a feeling that I Nerazzurri could achieve something special this season with Conte's work at the helm already paying dividends.
Indeed, Inter have won seven of their eight league matches this season to collect 21 points, with their only defeat coming at home to Juve on October 6. The reigning champions currently lead the table but by just by a single point ahead of this weekend's fixtures.
Conte's team were actually in danger of dropping points at Sassuolo last weekend but managed to hold on in the latter stages to claim an important 4-3 win. Romelu Lukaku netted twice in that affair to make it five goals in eight Serie A appearances since arriving from Manchester United.
The Italian giants were also in Champions League action on Wednesday night, recording a 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund courtesy of goals from Lautaro Martinez and Antonio Candreva to move onto four points in Group F, which leaves them second behind Barcelona.
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Four wins and four defeats – that is how Parma have performed in the early stages of the 2019-20 Serie A season. It has been a real mixed bag in terms of performances and indeed results, but Roberto D'Aversa's side will enter this match off the back of an impressive run of form.
Indeed, Parma have won three of their last four in Italy's top flight, including a thumping 5-1 victory over Genoa last weekend, which was a result that moved them into eighth position, just four points off fourth.
Declared bankrupt in 2015 before being re-founded in Serie D, Parma managed three straight promotions to return to Serie A for the 2018-19 season, where they finished 14th to secure another campaign of top-flight football as the rebuild continues.
The supporters will be expecting their team to kick on this season following a turbulent few years, and there is no question that the players will be confident following last weekend's hugely impressive win over Genoa.
Inter's early-season form makes them the strong favourites to triumph on Saturday night, but Parma actually recorded a 1-0 win at San Siro in the corresponding match last season, with Federico Dimarco, who was incredibly on loan from Inter, netting the only goal of the match late on.
Inter Milan form: WWWWLW
Parma form: LLWWLW
Team News
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Inter will again be without the services of on-loan Manchester United attacker Alexis Sanchez due to an ankle problem, while Danilo D'Ambrosio is unavailable due to a fractured finger.
Stefano Sensi has returned to training following a groin injury, although this weekend's contest might come too soon for the 24-year-old, who has been excellent since arriving on loan from Sassuolo.
It could be a case of same again from Conte in terms of team selection, with Martinez and Lukaku expected to continue their partnership in the final third, and Diego Godin, Stefan de Vrij and Milan Skriniar again lining up as the three centre-backs in a 3-5-2 formation.
As for Parma, centre-forward Roberto Inglese will miss out with the ankle injury that he picked up in the early stages of the Genoa clash.
Andreas Cornelius was Inglese's replacement last time out, and the Denmark international scored a stunning hat-trick off the bench, meaning that he is almost certain to be handed the central role against Inter.
Vincent Laurini and Bruno Alves are again expected to miss out through injury, but D'Aversa has no fresh injury concerns, meaning that the likes of Matteo Darmian and Gervinho are sure to feature once again.
Inter Milan possible starting lineup: Handanovic; De Vrij, Godin, Skriniar; Asamoah, Barella, Brozovic, Gagliardini, Candreva; Martinez, Lukaku
Parma possible starting lineup: Sepe; Darmian, Iacoponi, Dermaku, Gagliolo; Barilla, Kucka, Scozzarella; Gervinho, Cornelius, Kulusevski
We say: Inter Milan 2-0 Parma
Parma will be the fresher of the two teams having had the week off while Inter tackled Dortmund, but it is difficult to back against the hosts due to their impressive form this season. We expect Conte's side to pick up another three points in Italy's top flight courtesy of a two-goal success.
Matt Law
