Unbeaten leaders Juve to host Inter in Serie A glamor tie

Inter Milan have had a decent season so far, taking 29 points from 14 games, but face their toughest test yet on Friday.

Serie A’s third-placed side Inter Milan face a daunting trip to leaders Juventus on Friday, needing points to chase down Napoli in second and keep their current four-point buffer to rivals AC Milan, who occupy fourth spot.

Juve have won seven of their last eight games in all competitions, losing only to Manchester United, and have kept a clean sheet in each of their last four matches.

Cristiano Ronaldo has contributed 10 goals and five assists this season so far and will be the main attraction, but there are several other big names who will be on show in this glamour tie.

Key battles

Marcelo Brozovic will be important for Inter up against Rodrigo Bentancur and Blaise Matuidi in the Juve midfield, as well as Miralem Pjanic, if he returns to the side having been on the bench against Fiorentina last weekend.

Radja Nainggolan could be crucial alongside Brozovic for Inter if he returns from an injury sustained against Tottenham a couple of weeks ago in the Champions League; his quality is a level above Borja Valero, who has replaced him in the team.

Mattia De Sciglio and Joao Cancelo, Juve’s full-backs, will need to marshall Ivan Perisic and Keita Balde, Inter’s dangermen out wide, and will need to be more conservative than usual when it comes to attacking to combat the threat the pair pose.

Mauro Icardi is the main player to watch for Inter — he’s their top goalscorer with eight goals — and Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci will need to be on top form.

Equally, Inter’s central defenders Milan Skriniar and Stefan de Vrij face the unenviable task of keeping Ronaldo, Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala under wraps. Federico Bernardeschi is another top-class option who will likely come off the bench for Juve.

Samir Handanovic in the Inter goal will know he is in for a difficult evening — he will need to make some big saves if his side are to take anything back to Milan.

Previous meetings

Juve certainly have the edge in recent times, winning 10 of the last 19 meetings between the teams. Inter have won just three in that period, with their last victory coming in 2016.

Last season, the game at the Allianz Arena finished goalless, but in Milan, Juve were victorious by three goals to two.

Only two of the last 11 matches between the teams in Serie A have seen one side win by more than one goal, so a tight affair can be expected. With so many stars on show, it should prove to be an excellent game.