Italian coach Simone Inzaghi, leading Inter Milan, shifted some of the pressure back onto Juventus before the highly anticipated Derby d’Italia, listing them among the “Scudetto” contenders due to their big spending in the summer transfer window.

After Juventus coach Thiago Motta claimed that Inter is the favorite for the Scudetto—conveniently leaving his own team out of the mix—Inzaghi took his turn at the press conference. He didn’t hold back, firing back at Motta and heating up the Italian classic set for Sunday at the Giuseppe Meazza (San Siro), with Inter sitting in second place and Juve in third, just a point behind.

“There are 4-5 teams in the race for the Scudetto. This year, the league is going to be more balanced. Our goals are clear—we want to win as many games as possible and go as far as we can in the cups. Other teams have spent big to get in the race…” said the Inter coach.

Inzaghi didn’t hesitate to praise Motta’s work either, noting that, even though Juve just took their first Champions League loss, they remain unbeaten in Serie A.

“A win tomorrow would be a big confidence boost, but it’s only the ninth matchday, so it’s not decisive yet. It’s going to be a close game—Juventus has the best defensive record in Europe, with only one goal allowed from a penalty. We’re coming off five straight wins, but we’re not satisfied with just results—we know we have to keep improving,” he pointed out.

The coach also reminisced about his best matches against Juve since taking charge at Inter. “This will be my eleventh match against Juve since I arrived in Milan. My favorite was last year’s league win, which gave us that extra push toward the title,” he concluded.