Blue-packed battle – Inter and Napoli continue their fight at the top

In Sunday’s Serie A schedule, the most interesting matches will be Bologna vs Napoli on one hand, and Inter vs Lazio on the other.

Both Bologna and Napoli return to Serie A action on Sunday after being held to goalless draws in midweek, meeting at the Stadio Dall’Ara in what promises to be a tightly contested clash.

Neither side has managed to gain traction in European competition, yet both are flying high domestically. Bologna have amassed 18 points from their opening 10 league matches — matching the club’s best start to a Serie A campaign in the 21st century. Following last season’s Coppa Italia success, the Rossoblu remain unbeaten in nine games across all competitions, including last week’s triumph over local rivals Parma.

In that clash at Stadio Tardini, Vincenzo Italiano’s side came from behind to win a fiery Derby dell’Emilia, with Santiago Castro scoring his first Serie A brace and lifting Bologna into the top six. While Bologna will be aiming for victory against the reigning champions at home, history hints at another stalemate: the last three meetings at the Dall’Ara between these two sides have all ended in draws. Consequently, Napoli have won only once in their last five encounters with Bologna, after previously enjoying a five-game winning streak.

Napoli recently reclaimed the top spot with a victory over Inter Milan, followed by a narrow win against Lecce, thanks to penalty heroics from Vanja Milinkovic-Savic — who has saved five of 10 penalties since last season.

However, their perfect home record was snapped last weekend in a dramatic goalless draw with Como, during which Milinkovic-Savic redeemed himself after conceding a penalty by stopping Alvaro Morata’s spot-kick. He then helped secure another clean sheet midweek.

Even in Tuesday’s Champions League clash with Eintracht Frankfurt, expected to be high-scoring, Napoli settled for a 0-0 draw, with missed opportunities from Eljif Elmas and Scott McTominay. While unbeaten at home, Napoli have lost two of five away games this season — already matching their total from last year’s title-winning campaign — making the trip to Bologna far from guaranteed points.

Bologna will be without veterans Ciro Immobile and Remo Freuler, while Napoli face a deeper injury crisis: Billy Gilmour and Leonardo Spinazzola join Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne on the sidelines.

Inter Milan - Lazio

Meanwhile, Inter Milan aim to maintain their flawless European record and keep pressure on Serie A rivals by taking on Lazio at San Siro on Sunday evening.

The Biancocelesti arrive unbeaten in six games, having strengthened their defense and shaken off a slow start. Last week, a brilliant Piotr Zielinski set-piece and a late own goal secured Inter a win against Hellas Verona.

Since back-to-back losses two months ago, the Nerazzurri have claimed six wins from seven league matches, scoring at an average of over two goals per game. Inter boast 11 different scorers and a league-high 24 goals so far.

Lautaro Martínez continues his impressive form in Europe, helping Inter score at least twice in 11 of their last 12 Champions League matches, including Wednesday’s win over Kairat. Despite conceding their first league goal of the season, Inter still collected four points from four Champions League matches, with Carlos Augusto netting a second-half winner against the Kazakh side.

Third in the table, Cristian Chivu’s team are on course for automatic progression in Europe and will look to finish the weekend before the international break with another domestic victory. Inter are unbeaten in their last six home league games against Lazio (plus a Coppa Italia tie), making them strong favorites. Yet, Lazio have taken points from their last two trips to Milan, including Pedro’s dramatic late equalizer in May that impacted Inter’s title hopes.

The capital side now trail Inter by only six points, having collected 12 points from their last 18 since losing the Derby della Capitale to Roma. Coach Maurizio Sarri, dealing with a transfer ban and a long injury list, has adopted a pragmatic approach, guiding Lazio to recover form. Monday’s 2-0 win over Cagliari extended their streak to four consecutive clean sheets for the first time since 2023.

Having secured back-to-back home league wins for the first time this year, Lazio now travel north to test the strength of their revival against a formidable Inter side.

SERIE A - MATCHDAY 11

Friday

Pisa - Cremonese 1-0 (0-0)

/Toure 75/

Saturday

Como - Cagliari 0-0

Lecce - Verona 0-0

Juventus - Torino 0-0

Parma - Milan 2-2 (1-2)

/Bernabe 45+1, Del Prato 62 - Saelemaekers 12, Leao 25 pen/

Sunday

14.30: (1.50) Atalanta (4.55) Sassuolo (7.00)

17.00: (3.10) Bologna (3.15) Napoli (2.60)

17.00: (2.95) Genoa (3.05) Fiorentina (2.80)

20.00: (1.57) Roma (4.05) Udinese (6.00)

22.45: (1.40) Inter (5.25) Lazio (8.00)

***odds are subject to change***