(Football news) After defeating Lecce shortly before Christmas, Inter is now four points ahead of their closest rivals, Juventus, while their hosts moved farther clear of the drop zone by defeating Sassuolo.
Although ‘Campioni d’Inverno’ does not come with any hardware, the winners at the halfway stage of most Serie A seasons typically go on to win the Scudetto a few months later. As such, Inter will try to increase the pressure on their rivals by winning the league for the fifth time in a row.
The Nerazzurri have won all four of their previous top-flight games without giving up a goal; they have triumphed over Napoli, Udinese, Lazio, and most recently, Lecce, to further establish their status as clear favorites to win the championship.
A few days after their dramatic elimination from the Coppa Italia, which they had dominated for two years, due to an extra-time meltdown against Bologna, Inter recovered in Serie A, defeating Lecce at San Siro thanks to goals from Nicolo Barella and Yann Bisseck either side of the half.
A new record was also achieved by Milan’s coach Simone Inzaghi, who saw his team score in 25 straight Serie A games. No other Milan manager had ever accomplished this feat.
Inter’s defensive record, nevertheless, may be even more remarkable this season because no team in the top five leagues in Europe has given up fewer goals (seven) and maintained more clean sheets (12).
They will now play their final game of the year at Stadio Luigi Ferraris, where they haven’t allowed a goal against Genoa since 2018. In their last four visits, the Nerazzurri have won three times, tied once, and scored nine goals without receiving an answer.
Even though Genoa’s visit from the Serie A leaders could be their hardest test since making a comeback to the majors earlier this year, Alberto Gilardino’s team is demonstrating that they can handle life at the top.
Gilardino was lucky to escape an immediate relegation to Serie B at the beginning of the season, and after collecting 19 points from their opening 17 games, the former Milan striker has his team poised for survival.
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