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This will be Inter's first of the last six matches of the 15/16 Serie A season, and it will be a very important one. Both clubs are 6 points away from their target: the Nerazzurri are chasing a Champions League spot, trying to steal it from Roma while Napoli would like to close the gap between them and Juve to reach first place and win a historic Scudetto. Both teams have really hard, if not impossible, tasks but they will surely fight until the end to get the most out of their last fixtures.
Inter come into this match after a signature 1-0 win against Frosinone. It was much more difficult than expected for the Nerazzurri to bring home the three points last weekend but they somehow managed to do it, refueling Champions League hopes because of Roma's draw against Bologna on Monday night. Icardi scored his 50th goal in just 100 matches for Inter, making him one of the most prolific scorer in the history of the club despite the few chances per game he has.
Speaking of prolific scorers, Gonzalo Higuain won't take part to this fixtures because of the three-match ban he was inflicted for the enraged reaction against the referee, who had just ejected him, and several Udinese players in the 1-3 loss against the Bianconeri two weeks ago (it was originally four matches but on appeal it was reduced, thankfully not enough for him to appear in this game). This is surely good news because El Pipita was having a tremendous 15/16 campaign with 30 goals in 31 appereances and he also scored a decisive deuce the first time these two teams met this season.
Mancini will have the whole squad available for this crucial clash and it will be interesting to see which players he will choose and how they will line up on the field. Higuain's absence surely will hurt Napoli in this match but Gabbiadini, who was an Inter target before being signed by the Partenopei, is a quick striker with a deadly left foot so he will be a threat for Inter's defense too. Fortunately, Miranda is back from the suspension and he will bring his usual tranquility and order to the back-four, who will probably be protected by three midfielders: Brozovic, Medel, and Kondogbia. The Frenchman has been relegated to the bench lately but Mancini said in the pre-match press conference that his calf issues are now gone so Geoffrey is good to go now and he could overcome Melo for the starting role. Icardi and Perisic have been key pieces for this Inter team this season and particularly in the last months and they will definitely be on the pitch from the very first minute. There is no guarantee about which other offensive men Mancio will choose for this match, but it looks like Eder with his sweet technique and unpredictability could have an edge on the other players.
Official Starting XIs
Inter: Handanovic; D'Ambrosio, Miranda, Murillo, Nagatomo; Brozovic, Medel, Kondogbia; Jovetic, Icardi, Perisic;
Napoli: Reina; Hysaj, Albiol, Koulibaly, Strinic; Allan, Jorginho, Hamsik; Callejon, Gabbiadini, Insigne;
How to Watch
TV: beIN Sports (U.S. & Canada), Sky Calcio 1 HD (Italy) , Sky Sport 1 HD (Italy) , Sky SuperCalcio HD (Italy), PremiumSport HD (Italy), RAI International
Online: Fubo TV, beIN Sports Connect (U.S. & Canada), Sky Go Italia (Italy)