Stadio Olimpico is the venue as Lazio and Inter go head-to-head in a handsomely-looking Serie A clash on Friday. Both sides have high appetites this season, especially the visitors, who are in hot pursuit of what would be a 20th Scudetto.
It’s been a relatively quiet transfer window for Lazio in terms of the incomings. Other than former Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Marcos Antonio and ex-Spezia goalkeeper Ivan Provedel, Maurizio Sarri’s men have struggled for high-profile acquisitions. But they’ve, nonetheless, enjoyed a decent start to the season.
Lazio came from a 1-0 halftime deficit to dispatch Bologna 2-1 at home on the opening weekend before being held to a tepid scoreless draw at Torino last time out. But their decent defending could be crucial to Sarri’s bid to steer the Biancocelesti back into the Serie A top four for the first time since 2019/20.
On the other hand, after finishing runners-up to arch-rivals Milan last season, Inter have opened their checkbook in the summer to land several big-name players. In addition to Romelu Lukaku’s blockbuster return from Chelsea on a season-long loan, Henrikh Mkhitaryan has joined the club on a short-term contract from Roma.
While waiting for the Armenian to find his footing at Giuseppe Meazza, head coach Simone Inzaghi has already reaped the reward from his side’s reunion with Lukaku. The Belgian striker has racked up a goal and an assist in the opening two Serie A matches this term as Inter claimed victories over Lecce and Spezia.
Match Preview
Lazio
Keen to better last season’s fifth-place finish in Serie A, Lazio will be looking to show they mean business this season by putting Inter to the sword. Sarri’s men have gone unbeaten in their last three league meetings with the Nerazzurri at the Stadio Olimpico (W2, D1), netting 2+ goals in both triumphs.
That’s a good omen as Torino held them goalless for the first time in ten Serie A outings last weekend. Despite drawing a blank in Turin, Sarri’s lads have showcased tremendous shooting accuracy so far this season. Ciro Immobile & Co boast an eye-catching 67% accuracy, suggesting this could be a long evening for Inter keeper Samir Handanovic.
The abovementioned victory over Bologna on matchday one means Lazio could win their opening two Serie A matches of a new season for the first time since 2015/16. Bringing the 2021/22 season into the equation, they’ve won two of their last three home league outings (D1), so there’s plenty of optimism in the Biancocelesti camp.
Inter
Despite claiming a 2-1 win at newly-promoted Lecce in their inaugural 2022/23 Serie A fixture, the visitors’ performance at Stadio Via del Mare flattered to deceive. However, Inter noticeably improved their form against Spezia, as they cruised to a landslide 3-0 home victory on matchday two despite wasting numerous clear-cut chances.
If they can repeat last week’s performance in Rome, Inzaghi’s hopes of stringing together four successive Serie A wins for the first time as an Inter manager should be realistic. There’s another piece of history up for grabs here.
After seeing his side score 2+ goals in their opening three Serie A games last season, Inzaghi could become the first-ever Inter boss to achieve that feat across two consecutive campaigns.
But much of the travelling side’s effort to maintain their 100% league start will depend on the Nerazzurri backline that has failed to keep a clean sheet in their last five league meetings with Lazio.
Team News
Pedro, who has endured an injury-riddled start to the new Serie A season, has returned to the fold and could make Sarri’s starting line-up on Friday. The Spaniard’s recovery is a massive boost for Lazio, who struggled for goalscoring opportunities against Torino.
As for Inter, Raoul Bellanova and Mkhitaryan are unavailable for selection due to injury. But Inzaghi should have an otherwise fully-fit squad for tomorrow’s clash.
Lazio vs Inter Potential Line-ups
Lazio (4-3-3): Ivan Provedel; Alessandro Romagnoli, Patric, Manuel Lazzari, Adam Marusic; Danilo Cataldi, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Matias Vecino; Pedro, Felipe Anderson, Ciro Immobile.
Inter (3-5-2): Samir Handanovic; Milan Skriniar, Stefan de Vrij, Alessandro Bastoni; Denzel Dumfries, Hakan Calhanoglu, Marcelo Brozovic, Nicolo Barella, Federico Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Romelu Lukaku.