After two painful losses in the past week, Inter Milan will seek a positive response when they visit Serie A strugglers Pisa on Sunday.
Before meeting their fellow Nerazzurri at Arena Garibaldi, Inter have lost the Milan derby and a high-profile Champions League clash, so they cannot afford to slip up against promoted opponents.
Match preview
Completing a dismal few days for the Italian giants, conceding a last-gasp goal consigned Inter to defeat in Wednesday’s game against Atletico Madrid and ended their flawless Champions League start.
Piotr Zielinski’s second-half equaliser was not enough for the Nerazzurri to claim another point – though they are still placed inside the all-important top eight with three games to go.
While far from a disaster in isolation, that chastening setback came straight on the coat-tails of losing the season’s first Derby della Madonnina to city rivals AC Milan.
Denied by the Rossoneri’s inspired captain Mike Maignan, Inter set-piece specialist Hakan Calhanoglu registered only his second miss from the penalty spot in 33 attempts since moving to Serie A, crucially failing to punish his former club.
Ultimately beaten 1-0 at San Siro – thereby slipping to fourth place in the table – Cristian Chivu’s side also failed to score for the first time this term.
Having developed an unwelcome habit of losing big matches – taking nothing from games against Napoli, Juventus and now Milan – they must make sure of collecting maximum points against Calcio’s lesser lights.
© Imago / Gribaudi
Though Pisa have lost their last five Serie A matches against Inter, the most recent of those defeats came in March 1991, on their previous visit to Italy’s top flight.
Just before the November international break, the Tuscan club finally posted their first top-tier victory for 34 years by beating fellow promoted side Cremonese.
On Monday, they were heading for back-to-back wins, but conceding deep into second-half stoppage time saw the Nerazzurri settle for a 2-2 draw with Sassuolo, who beat them to the Serie B title last season.
While Inter have yet to share the points this term, Pisa have now drawn seven of their first dozen fixtures – but both have lost the same number of league games (four).
In fact, Alberto Gilardino’s men are unbeaten in six matches and may be eyeing a longstanding club record of eight that was set back in 1986.
So, following a slow start, there are signs that Pisa might have what it takes to avoid relegation, having scored as many times over the past three matchdays as across the first nine.
Furthermore, since mid-September, 436 minutes of football have passed at Arena Garibaldi without the hosts conceding a single goal.
Pisa Serie A form:
D D D D W D
Inter Milan Serie A form:
W L W W W L
Inter Milan form (all competitions):
W W W W L L
Team News
© Imago
As Denzel Dumfries is still struggling with an ankle problem, he will again join fellow wing-back Matteo Darmian on the sidelines, but Inter should be able to recall veteran midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
The latter will challenge Zielinski and Petar Sucic for selection, while either Carlos Augusto or Luiz Henrique will replace Dumfries on the right flank.
Once more, Marcus Thuram must fight Italy striker Francesco Pio Esposito to partner the visitors’ captain, Lautaro Martinez; fellow forward Ange-Yoan Bonny is ruled out by illness.
Any major changes might be saved for next week’s Coppa Italia tie against Serie B side Venezia, while Pisa are already out of the cup and can fully focus on top-flight survival.
After scoring the opener against Sassuolo, M’Bala Nzola will seek his first strike on home turf, most likely leading the line in a 3-4-2-1 formation.
Henrik Meister found the net as a substitute on Monday night, so the Danish striker is also in contention to start up front.
Gilardino is still missing injured trio Calvin Stengs, Tomas Esteves and Mateus Lusuardi, plus Inter loanee Ebenezer Akinsanmiro (shoulder) and ex-Inter winger Juan Cuadrado (hamstring).
Pisa possible starting lineup:
Semper; Calabresi, Caracciolo, Canestrelli; Toure, Piccinini, Aebischer, Angori; Tramoni, Leris; Nzola
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Akanji, Acerbi, Bastoni; Henrique, Barella, Calhanoglu, Sucic, Dimarco; Martinez, Thuram
We say: Pisa 0-2 Inter Milan
For all their woes over the past week, Inter’s faults rarely appear against bottom-half opponents, and they should post a regulation win over Pisa.
The hosts are proving unexpectedly tough to beat, but this battle of the Nerrazzurri will see them heavily out-matched man for man.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
