Inter began their season in the best possible way last week, and now look to build on the victory in a tricky away match against Cagliari . Match on Sunday at 20:45 CET

Inter put in a performance of the week against Lecce last Monday night, but that does not mean that the trip to Cagliari will be of similar comfort. Cagliari is team stacked with proven Serie A performers and veterans and are managed by a seasoned coach who knows how to build sides that survive in the league based on tough and gritty defending.

Antonio Conte’s formation will probably be mostly unchanged from last week, barring the possibility of seeing Stefan DiVrij starting ahead of Andrea Ranocchia in the heart of the three man defense as well as the local boy Nicolo Barella starting ahead of Matias Vecino in the midfield. Fundamental to last week’s success was the clear understanding shown between Lautaro Martinez and Romelu Lukaku as well as the mobility and positional dynamism of the central midfield trio.

If Inter are able to expend the same level of physical effort, expect Conte’s loaded midfield and extra-wide use of wing-backs to overwhelm Rolando Maran’s Christmas tree formation. That said, in Joao Pedro, Valter Birsa and Radja Nainggolan, Maran possesses a trio of proven attacking threats the latter two of whom have been consistent tormentors of Inter with different clubs over the years.

It will be interesting to see what overriding tactic Maran will employ in his approach to the match, whether he will opt for defensive solidity and hope for a lucky break or whether he will take the match to the guests. It is difficult to see a favorable outcome for the hosts if they try and defend a clean sheet, Inter seem physically very fit, and the bench is full of quality options to come on and try and break the deadlock if required. Seems like an interesting chess match between to seasoned Serie A coaches awaits.

Team News

It has been a busy week for Inter off the pitch, Alexis Sanchez and Cristiano Biraghi have arrived to bolster the squad depth, a host of unwanted players have been sent out to new clubs and, almost incredibly, the Mauro Icardi soap opera seems to finally be coming to an end. It is reported that Biraghi and Sanchez are working overtime to make the squad but both will be unlikely to feature, let alone start the match. Expect Diego Godin to start ahead of Danilo D’Ambrosio, although with the tough Champions League draw, Conte might want to ensure his star defender’s full fitness before sending him back into competition.

Probable line-up (3-5-2): Handanovic (C); D’Ambrosio, DiVrij, Skrinniar; Candreva, Barella, Brozovic, Sensi, Asamoah; Lukaku, Lautaro

Stats

Last Season: Cagliari  2 – 1 Inter.

Last 10 Head to Head: Inter hold a small lead over their hosts over the previous ten league matches, the Nerazzurri have five wins to the Sardinians’ three wins.

Keep an Eye on

Marcelo Brozovic: Epic Brozo was in full effect last week against Lecce, the Croatian midfield metronome led the statistics tables in almost every category; passing, running, tackling, the whole lot. He also capped his performance with a long distance gem of a goal to open the scoring.

If Brozovic manages to keep this level of performance throughout the season, expect European papers to start referring to him as one of the continent’s best.

Officials

Referee: Maurizio Mariani

Assistants: Lo Cicero and Del Giovane.

Fourth Official: Marinelli.

VAR Assistants: Maresca and Preti.

Prediction & Concluding Remarks 

Prediction & scorers: Cagliari 1-2 Inter with Lautaro and Lukaku sealing it for Inter.

Concluding remarks: One should not get too carried away from what was on display last week. The trip to Cagliari is never a walk in the park and the Isolani squad is more than capable of troubling any top side in the league.

If Inter manage to put out a performance similar to that of last Monday, at least in terms of attitude, effort and ideas, then Interisti around the world can venture a degree or two more of optimism for the season.