This week sees the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final and we have two excellent fixtures to enjoy. The first takes place on Wednesday night as Inter Milan meet Napoli at the San Siro.
As the Coppa Italia semi-finals are played over two legs, away goals count so it is important for teams to consider keeping a clean sheet at home or scoring goals when playing away.
Inter Milan come into this match full of confidence having defeated rivals AC Milan 4-2 in Serie A on Sunday night. Things were not looking good for Antonio Conte’s team at half time as they went in losing 2-0. However, a stirring comeback in the second half saw Inter Milan score 4 unanswered goals as they went on to claim maximum points and move to the top of Serie A on goal difference.
That result means Inter Milan have won each of their last three games in all competitions including 2 wins in Serie A and one victory in the Coppa Italia. Trends show Inter Milan are undefeated in their last 10 matches in all competitions and their last 6 games at home.
Inter Milan entered the Coppa Italia at the round of 16 stage with a home fixture against Cagliari. They won that match comfortably 4-1 and progressed to the quarter-final and a match at home against Fiorentina. A 67th minute goal by Nicolo Barella was enough to see Inter Milan reach the semi-final.
Napoli make the trip to Milan having suffered a disappointing 3-2 defeat at home against Lecce in Serie A on the weekend. That result means Napoli come into this cup game down in 11th place in the league. They are currently 12 points off the top four and 24 points behind opponents Inter Milan.
Trends show Napoli have won 3 of their last 4 matches in all competitions including victory over Lazio at home in the Coppa Italia. Like their opponents, Napoli entered the Coppa Italia at the round of 16 stage and defeated Perugia 2-0 at home before beating Lazio in the quarter-final. This will be their first away fixture in the competition this season and Napoli have lost only one of their last 6 away matches in all competitions.
However, they have one only 2 of those 6 away games and failed to keep a clean sheet in any of them.
Team news and Inter Milan will be hoping goalkeeper Samir Handanovic is back from a broken finger following a less than convincing performance from his replacement in the Milan derby. Borja Valero and Roberto Gagliardini are the only other doubts for the hosts.
Napoli are without defender Kevin Malcuit who has a cruciate ligament injury. Faouzi Ghoulam is a doubt due to a thigh problem.
Inter Milan will believe they have what it takes to complete the league and cup double this season. Even if they do concede a goal in this game, which is likely if Handanovic is out, they have the attacking talent to score a few goals themselves and win the match.
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