Last Wednesday Inter gave maybe their best performance of the season, along with the thumping derby win against Milan, as they swept aside Napoli 3-1. This has allowed them to catch Juventus at the top, who drew 2-2 away to Genoa on Thursday night. This will probably be the start of a long head-to-head battle between these two sides for the Scudetto, in keeping with most of the pre-season predictions.
Eventhough result-wise Inter’s start to the season has been positive, their performances haven’t always been completely convincing. There was a world of difference, for example, between their display against Napoli and the one away to Cagliari just three days earlier. For long parts of the latter game, they were outplayed and only two clinical strikes from Diego Milito allowed them to take home all three points.
It will be interesting to see if this match against Samp, only their second away game of the season, shows that Inter’s displays depend on whether they’re playing at home or away. It will certainly be a stern test, as the Blucerchiati have been doing well at the start of the season, aside from the defeat to Fiorentina on Wednesday night. However, if Milito and Samuel Eto’o keep getting their name on the scoresheet on a regular basis like they have been doing, Jose Mourinho’s team won’t need to worry too much if they aren’t playing great football.
Considering that Juventus have an easy-looking home game against Bologna, the pressure will be all on Inter to get a victory and ensure they remain at the top of the ladder.
Sampdoria Back On Planet Earth After Fiorentina Defeat
After four consecutive wins in their first four Serie A matches, a record in Sampdoria’s history, Luigi Del Neri’s side fell to a bad defeat in midweek away to Fiorentina, who outclassed the Blucerchiati and could have won by a bigger margin than 2-0. As usual, Antonio Cassano was Sampdoria’s best player, but this time his individual class wasn’t enough for the Doriani to secure another win.
Cassano has undoubtedly been the main architect of this strong start to the season by Samp, which is something of a surprise since they are coming off a disappointing 13th place finish in Serie A last season, though they did reach the Coppa Italia final. Much of the credit should go to Del Neri, who will definitely aim to bring the team back into Europe this season.
However, the performance against Fiorentina was somewhat worrying, as Sampdoria never looked like they would get anything out of the game. It seems clear they suffered the psychological pressure of being one of the joint leaders and having all eyes aimed at them. Perhaps after this first defeat of the season, they will no longer feel that pressure and simply get the results they are capable of.
TEAM NEWS
Sampdoria
Franco Semioli suffered a fracture in his shoulder in last weekend’s match against Siena and will be out for around a month. Meanwhile, defenders Pietro Accardi and Vasco Regini are also out injured, as is goalkeeper Vincenzo Fiorillo.
Possible formation (4-4-2): Castellazzi; Stankevicius, Gastaldello, Rossi, Zauri; Padalino, Palombo, Tissone, Mannini; Pazzini, Cassano
Inter
Wesley Sneijder suffered a slight injury during the match against Napoli and won’t be a part of the match, Dejan Stankovic looks certain to fill in for him behind the two strikers. Marco Materazzi and Thiago Motta are still out injured.
Possible formation (4-3-1-2): Julio Cesar; Maicon, Lucio, Samuel, Chivu; Zanetti, Cambiasso, Muntari; Stankovic; Milito, Eto’o
PREDICTION
Inter to earn a hard-fought victory. Sampdoria 0-1 Inter
source:goal.com
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