After a seemingly exceptional transfer market, Inter now are tasked to put their new acquisitions into action as they make the short trip to the Mapei stadium to face Sassuolo on Sunday at 20:30 CET.
And so the season begins. Inter travel to their jinx team Sassuolo for the season opener and will hope to reverse a recent trend of poor results against the Neroverdi whether at home or away.
It is undeniable that the mood in the Inter camp is very buoyant after what seems to be a near perfect mercato. The Nerazzurri have reinforced their side wisely and economically bringing in, for the most part, players who have proven themselves in the Serie A. While Luciano Spaletti might be drowining in tactical options and ways by which to integrate the newcomers into the side, injuries and late returns from the world cup by certain players will probably see Inter line-up in a manner not dissimilar to the one they did against Atletico Madrid in their final preseason friendly.
Question marks will remain as to whether Kwadwo Asamoah will start at left back or next to Marcelo Brozovic in the midfield. The former selection will probably mean that Inter will play a variant close to last season’s 4-2-3-1 with Matias Vecino or Roberto Gagliardini in the midfield, however, the latter selection will see an overloading of the left flank, pushing Lautaro Martinez more centrally to play just off Mauro Icardi. In all circumstances, Spaletti will have plenty of tactical options to chose from; a position he has never been in since taking over the Inter bench.
Roberto DeZerbi’s Sassuolo are even more difficult to predict. The young tactician has been lauded for his offensive minded tactics at Benevento, and will be expected to return Sassuolo to their recently cemented positon as Euopra League aspirants. Sassuolo have reinforced their side with some interesting names over the summer, not least of which is the returning Kevin Prince Boateng. KPB has already looked bright in the team’s preseason and can be expected to trouble the Inter back line through the match. One should not expect Sassuolo to sit deep and wait for Inter to get at them, and so expect this to be a very intriguing and open match between two sides looking to lay down a marker for the season.
Team News
As Spaletti looks to integrate his numerous new signings, expect latecomer Sime Vrsaljko not to start as he regains match fitness, while midfield combatant Radja Nainggolan’s hamstring injury will prevent him from being selected. In in the center of defense, there are conflicting reports as to whether Joao Miranda or Stefan DiVrij will be picked to start, although Italian papers seem to see Spaletti keeping the Skriniar-Miranda ongoing and to ease the Dutch defender into competition.
Probable Inter line-up (subject to change): (4-2-3-1) Handanovic; D’Ambrosio, Miranda, Skriniar, Dalbert; Brozovic, Asamoah; Perisic, Lautaro, Politano; Icardi (C)
Stats
Last Season: Sassuolo 1 – 0 Inter
Last 10 Head to Head: Immediately after their debut appearance in Italy’s top flight, Sassuolo were somewhat of Inter’s whipping boys, losing by seven goals in two consecutive seasons. This trend has recenetly been reveresed and the Neroverdi have had the better of Inter in six of their previous seven matches. Incidentally, no match between the two teams has ever ended in a draw.
Keep an Eye on
Matteo Politano: The young Italian forward made the switch from Sassuolo to Inter over the summer and will start the season at his previous home. One can expect Politano to be particularly fired up in this encounter and show more of the promising form he’s been on during the preseason.
Officials
Referee: Maurizio Mariani.
Assistants: Carbone and Ranghetti.
Fourth Official: Di Paolo.
Additional Assistants: Valeri and Del Giovane.
Prediction & Final Comments
Prediction & scorers: Sassuolo 0-2 Inter with Icardi and Politano scoring.
Final Comments: While it’s important to start the season on the right foot, not winning in the opening match is never a disaster, however, what’s particularly pertinent to securing a win will be finally rubbing Sassuolo’s gloating Milanista owner’s proverbial face in a home loss topped with a Politano goal.
