Italy will come to a standstill on Saturday night as Juventus and Inter Milan renew their fierce rivalry in the season’s first Derby d’Italia at the Allianz Stadium in Turin.
Juventus arrive in strong form, having collected maximum points from their opening games, while Inter stumbled before the international break and already find themselves chasing early ground in the title race.
Dating back to 1909, the Derby d’Italia is one of world football’s most historic rivalries, pitting together the two clubs with the most Scudetti in Serie A history. Saturday’s clash adds another chapter to over a century of drama, passion, and unforgettable moments.
The Allianz crowd will remember last October’s thriller, when Juve’s Kenan Yildiz struck twice late on to secure a remarkable 4-4 draw in Milan. In February’s return fixture, Francisco Conceição’s lone goal proved enough to give the Bianconeri another crucial result, extending their excellent recent record against Inter on home soil. In fact, Juventus have lost just one of their last 11 league meetings with the Nerazzurri in Turin, a statistic that will give Igor Tudor’s men plenty of confidence heading into the weekend.
Tudor, now in his first full season in charge, has steadied the Juventus ship amid ongoing off-field turbulence. Wins over Parma and Genoa have set the tone for a campaign where Juve hope to push past last year’s fourth-place finish and mount a serious title challenge. With Napoli defending their crown, neither Juve nor Inter can afford to slip in a race that already looks as tight as ever.
For Inter, there is added pressure. Despite often finishing above their rivals in the table in recent years, the Nerazzurri have only beaten Juventus once in their last six Serie A encounters. That poor record needs correcting, particularly after their surprise setback against Udinese last time out.
Inter had opened their season in style with a commanding win over Torino, but a 2-1 defeat to Udinese at San Siro raised early doubts about Cristian Chivu’s project. The former treble-winning defender, promoted to the top job after saving Parma from relegation, has already come under scrutiny after seeing his side squander a lead and then collapse late.
Now, just two weeks later, Chivu faces his biggest test yet. Winning away to Juventus would not only restore belief in his squad but also silence early critics. With a Champions League trip to Ajax looming, the stakes could hardly be higher for Inter.
INJURIES & SUSPENSIONS
Juventus face a few tricky selection decisions in attack, with Jonathan David impressing both domestically and on international duty, while unsettled striker Dusan Vlahovic has managed goals against Parma and Genoa despite being used as a substitute.
New signing Lois Openda is another option up front, but Francisco Conceicao remains doubtful after withdrawing from Portugal’s squad with a muscle issue. Midfielder Fabio Miretti is also battling a thigh injury and could be sidelined.
In defence, Andrea Cambiaso serves the second game of his suspension following a red card on the opening day, leaving Joao Mario and Filip Kostic to compete with the versatile duo of Pierre Kalulu and Weston McKennie for the wing-back roles.
For Inter, recent recruit Manuel Akanji may be handed his Serie A debut after arriving on deadline day. The Swiss defender is pushing to replace Yann Bisseck in Cristian Chivu’s back three, likely the only alteration to the visitors’ starting XI.
Elsewhere, summer additions Luiz Henrique, Andy Diouf, and Ange Bonny are all available but expected to start from the bench. In attack, Marcus Thuram has already netted twice this season, while captain Lautaro Martinez will look to improve his underwhelming record against Juve, having scored just two goals in 14 league appearances against the Turin giants.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Di Gregorio; Gatti, Bremer, Kelly; Kalulu, Thuram, Locatelli, Mario; Koopmeiners, Yildiz; David
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Akanji, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Sucic, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
EXPERT PREDICTION
Juventus 2-2 Inter Milan
