Out-of-sorts Sampdoria and South American-crippled Inter will trade tackles at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris in an exciting Serie A clash and it’s time to preview the game and take a look at the expected lineups. While the current titleholders enjoyed a flying start to the season, the hosts have yet to taste victory this term.
Despite losing two key players in the shape of Achraf Hakimi and Romelu Lukaku, the Nerazzurri have made light work of their absence early in the season.
Sampdoria vs Inter Head-to-Head
Inter have racked up seven triumphs across their last eight Serie A meetings with Sampdoria, barring a 2-1 defeat at this venue in January. That failure halted the visitors’ three-match winning streak at Luigi Ferraris, a run that witnessed a brace of clean sheets.
Sampdoria now face the possibility of beating Inter in back-to-back home Serie A encounters for the first time since securing three consecutive triumphs against the Nerazzurri between 1989 and 1991.
Neutral could be in for a treat regardless of the outcome, given that three of the last four top-flight matches between these two sides at this venue featured 3+ total goals.
Sampdoria Form Preview
It has been an utterly disappointing start to the season for the Sampdoria faithful. Going into the international break, the Blucerchiati were one of just two teams in Serie A yet to find the back of the net despite attempting 24 attempts on goal and six on target.
After a narrow 1-0 home defeat to Milan, Sampdoria were held to a scoreless draw to Sassuolo at the Mapei Stadium last time out. They now face the prospect of failing to score in their opening three league matches for the first time in their top-flight history.
Scoring first could be paramount here, considering three of Sampdoria’s last four home Serie A victories have yielded a clean sheet, 2020/21 included. It will be up to Fabio Quagliarella to break his side’s goal drought. The veteran forward has been the second most prolific Italian player since 2018/19, with only Lazio’s Ciro Immobile bettering his tally of 50 strikes.
Meanwhile, former Inter winger Antonio Candreva could make his 400th Serie A appearance against his ex-employers, with just his teammate Quagliarella reaching that milestone in Italy’s top-flight since his competition debut in January 2008.
Inter Form Preview
New manager Simone Inzaghi has taken no prisoners in the opening two Serie A matches in Inter’s dugout to help the fans erase the memory of Antonio Conte’s summer departure. The reigning Italian champions were one of three clubs to win both inaugural Serie A fixtures by a 2+ goal margin ahead of the international break.
After guiding his side to an overwhelming 4-0 home win on the opening weekend, Inzaghi saw his players perform a stunning second-half comeback to beat Hellas Verona 3-1 on the road last time out. As a result, the Nerazzurri are on an impressive 21-game scoring streak in Serie A, their fourth-longest such run in their top-flight history.
Inzaghi will mark his 200th managerial appearance in Serie A, with the Italian tactician winning 55.28% of his 199 such games so far. The 45-year-old entertains the prospect of starting a new top-flight season with three consecutive victories as a manager for the first time.
His former Lazio pupil Joaquin Correa, who netted a quick-fire double on his Inter debut against Verona, won’t be able to help his manager celebrate his landmark day with a bang. He and his compatriot Lautaro Martinez are not in contention for the squad after representing Argentina in September’s CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers.
But keep an eye on Edin Dzeko. The Bosnian has netted six Serie A goals against Sampdoria, including three in the last three outings.
Sampdoria vs Inter Predicted Lineups
Sampdoria (4-4-2): Emil Audero; Fabio Depaoli, Maya Yoshida, Omar Colley, Tommaso Augello; Antonio Candreva, Adrien Silva, Morten Thorsby, Mikkel Damsgaard; Francesco Caputo, Fabio Quagliarella.
Inter Milan (3-5-1-1): Samir Handanovic; Milan Skriniar, Stefan De Vrij, Alessandro Bastoni; Matteo Darmian, Nicolo Barella, Marcelo Brozovic, Hakan Calhanoglu, Federico Dimarco; Stefano Sensi; Edin Dzeko.