Inzaghi and Motta talk up Derby d'Italia chances
Inter Milan strolled to the Serie A title last season but Simone Inzaghi anticipates a much tighter Scudetto battle this time, with upcoming opponent Juventus likely to be involved.
Inzaghi's side finished 19 points clear of their closest rivals Milan in 2023-24, but it is currently two points behind leader Napoli after eight matches.
It sits one clear of Derby d'Italia rival Juve, which is now the only unbeaten team remaining in the Italian top flight ahead of Monday's (AEDT) head-to-head clash at San Siro, although defeat to Stuttgart in the UEFA Champions League last week has dull the glow a little, as has a lack of goals.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the match, Inzaghi refuted the suggestion his team is the clear title favourite, saying: "I don't like to talk much about favourites and things like that.
"This year it will be a more balanced championship than usual; many teams have spent a lot to close the gap that had been created.
"Juventus are the best team in Europe in terms of goals conceded, they have an excellent coach who I really like and they have invested a lot. They will remain protagonists throughout the year."
While Juve coach Thiago Motta and Napoli's Antonio Conte have both played down their own chances of title success, Inzaghi's past success does not allow him that luxury.
"I don't know if it's a strategy or something else, I can only speak for myself," Inzaghi said.
"We know that we start from the beginning of the season with clear goals, to play as many games as possible to ensure that we get as far as possible in the cups and try to be competitive in the league."
Inter enters the match with selection issues. Defender Francesco Acerbi is still out with a thigh injury sustained in the last league game, a 1-0 win at Roma, and midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu also went off injured in that match.
Kristjan Asllani could be in line to replace Calhanoglu, if he can recover from his own injury which has kept him out of Inter's last two games.
"We know what Calhanoglu represents for us, he is a world-class player. His natural replacement is Asllani, if he gives me the right guarantees he will play," Inzaghi said.
"He is a player who has improved a lot over the years, his misfortune is having Hakan ahead of him.
"Unfortunately he had a problem before Roma. Yesterday he had his first training session which didn't go badly and we will need to evaluate.
"In the same role we also have [Nicolo] Barella and [Piotr] Zielinski; I will carry this doubt until tomorrow evening."
Motta said Juventus' UEFA Champions League defeat against Stuttgart in midweek was in the past, as he eyes a win against Inter, a side he classed as "favourite" for the title.
"It’s clear that the favourites to win the league are Napoli and Inter, they have won the last two Scudetti," Motta said.
"Tomorrow, we have to face Inter with focus and courage.
“They are a team that plays really good football, they created problems for many sides on the counter-attack.
“They’re a very dangerous side, they regroup quickly, when they get attacked they have a good defensive phase and are also very fast up front, we need to be careful.”
Goals remain a problem for Juventus, too, and it had just one shot on target against the Bundesliga side, its fewest in a UEFA Champions League game since against Chelsea in September 2021.
However, Motta was not concerned about his side's showing, saying the defeat was firmly in his players' rearview mirror.
"There’s no need to work on mentality, the guys are in good shape. Understandably, in an historic team like ours, the expectations are extremely high," Motta said.
"It's the first defeat that's happened this season. Even when we win, we move on just the same.
"There’s no time to celebrate or dwell on a victory. The past is in the past; Stuttgart is behind us, and now we’re going to play Inter."