Parma vs Inter Milan Preview

After a midweek draw with Sassoulo, Inter’s title odds are as minuscule as the chances Gagliardini had of missing that point blank shot on Wednesday.

But it’s time to put that game behind us. Despite Inter now falling 11 points behind Juventus, the Nerrazurri can’t give up now, even if the goal has changed to hanging on to 3rd. Atalanta is sharp on Inter’s heels, and threatening to jump the Nerazzurri if given the opportunity to make up the 4 points separating the sides. La Dea play relegation threatened Udinese this weekend, so don’t expect any dropped points from Papu Gomez and Co. In that case, Inter will need the full three points from a trip to Parma.

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Roberto D’Aversa’s side come into this game on a bounce, after thrashing Genoa 4-1 behind a masterful performance from Andrea Cornelius. The Dane was on fire at Luigi Ferraris, tallying a hat trick. Still, he only plays a part of Parma’s triad attack. Cornelius, Dejan Kulesevki, and Gervinho have 28 goals and 11 assists between them so far. The three are most dangerous in transition, and have earned Parma the title of most dangerous side in the league from counter attacks. That will be something Inter has to watch out for, so perhaps the fullbacks will take up slightly deeper positions to limit Parma’s space on the wings. Inter’s center backs will also have to watch out for crosses, as Cornelius can be dangerous from that situation as well. In conclusion, Parma’s attack is quite something on its day and Inter needs to be compact and organized to limit its space.

Parma is also solid defensively, and has only dropped 6 points from winning positions, so Inter would love to draw blood first. As you may have suspected by now, Parma is relatively high up in the standings. In fact, I Crociati finds itself in 8th, right in the thick of things in the battle for the last Europa League place with AC Milan, Hellas Verona, and perhaps even Cagliari.

Predicted Starting XI’s

Notes

• With Conte having trouble playing Diego Godin, Ranocchia seems to be the favorite to start in replacement of Milan Skriniar, who is serving the first of a three match ban.

Photo by Paolo Rattini/Getty Images

Prediction

The last time these two met, a 2-2 draw was the end result. I expect that to be the case again on Sunday. Inter’s backline won’t be at its best, with Skriniar absent and Ranocchia likely to step in, so Cornelius should be able to add to his load of goals. Meanwhile, Lautaro and Lukaku will look to keep up their good form since the restart. This should be an entertaining game, and I look forward to it.