This is the most anticipated meeting of the season in Serie A: Inter Milan hosts Juventus Turin on Sunday (6:00 p.m.) for an Italian derby which can, as often happens, mark a turning point in the season.
. A poster that (is) dated
Even if almost 150 kilometers separate Milan and Turin, the poster for the 9th day is « THE » shock of Serie A, a duel played in a heated atmosphere between the two most successful clubs in Italian football (36 scudetti for Juve, 20 for Inter) who cordially hate each other.
Since their first clash on November 14, 1909, Football Club Internazionale Milano and Juventus Football Club have faced each other 251 times in official matches, including 209 times in the league.
Juventus Turin supporters during the Italian Championship match against Spezia on February 19, 2023 in La Spezia / ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP/Archives
In the results of their confrontations in Serie A, Juve leads by a large margin with 95 victories, against 61 successes for Inter, and 53 draws.
But Juve’s last victory dates back to March 2023 (1-0 at San Siro) in a dynamic clearly favorable to the Nerazzurri since 2021 (5 victories).
The return match at the Allianz Stadium will take place on February 16, 2025.
. Two teams looking for each other
On the road to his twentieth « scudetto » last season, Inter brought home a point from Turin (1-1) in November 2023, before winning 1-0 in front of their home crowd in the return match in February to take the lead in the championship.
But the reigning Italian champion has not (yet?) regained his formidable efficiency of 2023-24. Simone Inzaghi’s team is certainly 2nd in Serie A, two points behind Naples, and is heading towards the round of 16 of the Champions League with its seven points out of nine, but its defense which had only conceded 22 goals throughout the 2023-24 financial year, has already failed nine times.
And if Federico Dimarco shines, Nicolo Barella is far too discreet. Inzaghi will also be deprived of two executives, Hakan Calhanoglu and Francesco Acerbi, injured in the left thigh.
Juventus Turin striker Dusan Vlahovic during the Italian Championship match between Genoa and his team on September 28, 2024 in Genoa / MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP/Archives
Thiago Motta also has to deal with long (Milik, Gleison) and shorter (Gonzalez, Koopmeiners) absences. Under the leadership of the Brazilian-Italian technician, who arrived this summer in Turin after two seasons in Bologna, the “Old Lady” is 3rd in the championship, three lengths behind Naples, but his team, led by Dusan Vlahovic (5), has only scored eleven goals (9th attack in Serie A), as many as the promoted Como and Parma…
It has also just conceded its first defeat of the season against Stuttgart on Tuesday in C1 (1-0).
. Thurams everywhere, on the pitch and in the stands
This derby will have a particular flavor for the Thuram family, since the eldest Marcus, second top scorer in Serie A, will cross paths with his younger brother Khéphren who is starting to feel comfortable in the Juventus midfield that he joined this summer.
Inter Milan center forward Marcus Thuram after his goal against Young Boys (1-0) in the Champions League on October 23, 2024 in Bern / Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP/Archives
“Our whole family will be at San Siro, it will be something very beautiful”assured Marcus after giving Inter (1-0) victory against Young Boys in the Champions League with his eighth goal this season.
“My father will be behind my little brother and Juve, he is a former Juventus player, he remains a +juventino+”warned the eldest (27 years old) who was born and spent the first years of his life in Italy.
The last time Lilian Thuram’s sons faced each other, in the round of 16 of the 2018-19 League Cup, Marcus, then a Guingamp player, emerged victorious on penalties (0-0, 3 tab to 1 ) from Nice where Khéphren took his first steps as a professional.
“Revenge will be for me”promised the youngest (23 years old).