Inter v Udinese – Preview: Zebrette look to end Nerazzurri’s Champions League dreams

Date: 22nd April 2016 at 8:05pm
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Telles Inter UdineseInter welcome Udinese to the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on Saturday evening, with the hosts’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League on the line.

The Nerazzurri’s goal of finishing in a top-three spot has grown increasingly unlikely, after a lackluster performance on the weekend resulted in a disappointing 1-0 defeat at Genoa. After a strong start to the season, Roberto Mancini’s side have struggled over the second half of the season and now sit in fourth place, seven points behind Roma.

While the Zebrette are not enjoying their finest Serie A season, the mid-table club have recently triumphed over some of the league’s top teams including a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina last weekend as well as a 3-1 win against Napoli, a victory that essentially ended the Partenopei’s title run. Sitting in 14th place with just 38 points, Luigi De Canio’s side will aim to achieve another upset this week in Milan.

The reverse fixture, which took place in the middle of December, saw the Nerazzurri crush the Zebrette in a spectacular 4-0 win thanks to a brace from team captain Mauro Icardi, as well as goals from Stevan Jovetic and Marcelo Brozovic. Inter have not dropped points to Udinese since 2014.

Sporticos_com_inter_milan_vs_udinese_calcio

Mancini will have use of nearly his entire bench; only defensive midfielder Gary Medel is unavailable, as he serves a suspension due to an accumulation of yellow cards.

The Zebrette will not be as fortunate however, as forward Antonio Di Natale, who leads the team in assists will sit this one out as he recovers from a muscle strain. Defender Pablo Armero is also out with a injury and Ali Adnan is suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.

Form Guide: Inter (L-W-W-L-D) Udinese (W-D-L-W-D)

Expected Starting XIs:

Inter: Handanovic; D’Ambrosio, Miranda, Murillo, Nagatomo; Melo, Kondogbia, Brozovic, Jovetic, Perisic; Icardi

Udinese: Karnezis; Heurtaux, Danilo, Wague; Widmer, Badu, Kuzmanovic, Fernandes, Pasquale; Zapata, Thereau

Infographic Source: www.sporticos.com

 

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