Can Fabregas stop Inter's race for Scudetto?

Napoli are currently the team in the best form in Serie A, but it seems that Antonio Conte’s side hit their stride too late—and the Scudetto may once again leave Naples and head to the San Siro trophy room of Inter Milan. The Nerazzurri, led by Romanian coach Cristian Chivu, hold a seven-point lead with seven rounds remaining in the season. Inter had gone through a dip in both form and results after a shocking elimination from the Champions League playoffs by Bodo/Glimt. They collected just two points in three matches, giving hope to Napoli and city rivals AC Milan that the title race could become very interesting again. However, a convincing 5–2 win over AS Roma last round restored confidence. The Scudetto is within reach, but things could still get complicated if Napoli wins away at Parma Calcio and Inter fails to win in their tricky trip to Como 1907.

Meanwhile, Milan have effectively been ruled out of the title race after a heavy 3–0 defeat at home to Udinese Calcio. The regional derby—Como is just 50 km from Milan—could directly impact both the title race and the battle for Champions League spots. The team coached by Cesc Fabregas has slipped to fifth place following Juventus FC’s win over Atalanta BC in Bergamo. Como had been in excellent form until last week, when their four-game winning streak ended with a 0–0 draw against Udinese. Earlier this season, Inter crushed them 4–0. The two sides are also competing in the Coppa Italia semifinals—after a goalless first leg in Como, the return match will be played at San Siro later this month.

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Inter face additional problems ahead of the match, as Lautaro Martínez is once again sidelined due to injury and will be out for at least two weeks. The attacking duo is expected to be Francesco Pio Esposito and Marcus Thuram. Also unavailable for Inter is Yann Bisseck, while Fabregas will only be missing Jayden Addai. Jacopo Ramon returns for Como after injury. Nico Paz is expected to play as a “false nine,” with Martin Baturina and Ibrahim Diarra likely in the starting lineup. Anastasios Douvikas will begin the match on the bench.

SERIE A ROUND 32

Friday

Roma - Pisa 3-0 (2-0)

/Malen 3, 43, 52/

Saturday

Cagliari - Cremonese 1-0 (0-0)

/Esposito 63/

Torino - Verona 2-1 (1-1)

/Simeone 6, Casadei 50 - Bowie 38/

Milan - Udinese 0-3 (0-2)

/Barthesagi 27 og, Ekkelenkamp 37, Atta 71/

Atalanta - Juventus 0-1 (0-0)

/Boga 48/

Sunday

13.30: (2.20) Genoa (3.25) Sassuolo (3.50)

16.00: (6.25) Parma (3.60) Napoli (1.62)

19.00: (1.83) Bologna (3.50) Lecce (4.50)

21.45: (3.30) Como (3.40) Inter (2.35)

Monday

21.45: (2.35) Fiorentina (3.30) Lazio (3.10)

***odds are subject to change***