Inter hosts Napoli at the Giuseppe Meazza in Round 37 of the Italian Serie A.
Antonio Conte’s side moved to second place after a three-goal win against Genoa. However, with Juventus already clinching their ninth consecutive scudetto, Inter will have to be content with protecting 2nd place from Atalanta and Lazio. On the other hand, Napoli heads to Guiseppe Meazza after defeating Sassuolo to solidify 7th place and move within a point of moving up to 6th. Both teams are finishing up their respective Serie A campaign before heading to different European competitions next month. Inter is booked to play in the Europa League on August 5th while Napoli will face Barcelona in the second leg of their Round of 16 Champions League matchup on August 8th.
Inter had a strong finish by going undefeated in their last six games. Unfortunately, it was too late for them to catch up with Juventus which claimed a 9th consecutive Italian title. Inter has a record of 22-10-4 for a total of 76 points. They are one point ahead of third-place Atalanta and 4th place Lazio in the Serie A table.
In their last Serie A match against Genoa, Inter picked up a 3-0 win on the road. The team controlled 56% of possession time and they had four shots on goals, 6 corner kicks, and three big chances created. Inter Milan also made 85% of the correct passes. Two goals by Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez continued his impressive form with a goal to give Inter the victory.
Lukaku leads the team with a total of 23 goals scored on the season. Lautaro Martinez has also scored 13 goals with three assists while Antonio Candreva has five goals and seven assists for Inter. Alexis Sanchez leads the team with eight assists while also scoring four goals while Marcelo Brozovic has six assists and three steals this term.
Inter is the best defensive team in Italy with a total of 36 goals conceded this season. They are the second-best scoring team in the Serie A at 77 goals scored. Internazionale is also second in passing at 53 assists on the year and their goal difference of +41 is also second-best overall.
Napoli has been playing well lately but they have bowed out in the Europa League race in Serie A. However because they won the Coppa Italia, they have already earned automatic qualification to the Europa League competition. With a total of 59 points earned from a record of 17-8-11, they are in 7th place in the Series A table, a wide 11 points ahead of 8th place Sassuolo.
In their last game played, Napoli produced a 2-0 home win against Sassuolo. Napoli controlled 50% of ball possession and made 88% of the correct passes. They got a total of 8 shots on goals, seven corner kicks, and three big chances. Elseid Hysaj and Allan netted for Napoli while their defense stepped up as they picked up the home victory. With Gattuso as their head coach, Napoli has displayed good midfield control and ball movement.
Arkadiusz Milik leads the team with a total of 11 goals on the season while Dries Mertens has found the back of the net nine times this term. Lorenzo Insigne has scored seven times while also producing six assists. Jose Callejon leads the team with a total of seven assists on the season while also scoring four goals. Fabian Ruiz has contributed six assists and scored two goals.
Napoli ranks 7th in Italy with a total of 58 goals scored on the year. They are tied for 8th place with a total of 47 goals conceded. Napoli is also ranked 5th in passing with a total of 43 assists on the year. They are tied for 6th in Italy with a goal difference of +11 on the year.
Inter Milan isn’t expected to have the services of Matias Vecino and Stefano Sensi due to injuries. However, midfielder Nicolo Barella has served his suspension and will be ready to return for action for Inter. Conte is expected to make changes to the lineup he fielded on Saturday with Antonio Candreva, Ashley Young, and Stefan De Vrij expected to feature in the starting XI. Despite his impressive form, Sanchez could be pushed back to the bench with Lautaro Martinez and Lukaku manning the front two while being supported by Christian Eriksen.
As for Napoli, Gattuso doesn’t have injury concerns heading to this contest and I won’t be surprised to see the same starting XI which featured in the match against Sassuolo. Allan and Drie Martens are two names that are pushing for a spot in the starting unit but Arkadiusz Milik might be retained alongside Lorenzo Insigne and Jose Callejon in the attack. Kalidou Koulibaly’s future remains speculation but despite that, the Senegal international will line up for the visiting team.
Neither Inter nor Napoli needs something from this match so I will not blame you if you are tempted to pick the draw and its irresistible plus money. However, Inter has several players playing in peak form right now and with the Europa League just around the corner, they will want to keep their momentum going. I like Inter to win this match.
PREDICTION: INTER (+105)
The total has gone over in 20 out of 36 games played by Napoli this season. Likewise, the over is 9-6-4 in their 19 home matches played at Giuseppe Meazza this year. The total has also gone over in two out of the last three head to head meetings between these two sides and their last two head to head meetings have produced a total of at least five goals. Nine out of Inter’s last 10 games have seen the total go over 2.5 goals while six out of Napoli’s last nine matches have produced a total of at least three goals. I like these teams to hit the over 2.5 goals here, likely a 2-1 win by Internazionale.
PREDICTION: OVER 2.5 GOALS (-138)
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