A hard-fought win against Napoli midweek sets the stage for a home match against top flight newcomers Spezia, which could very well see Inter move to the top of the standings. Match tomorrow Sunday at 15:00 CET.

Antonio Conte knows that his side got away with one as they squeaked past Napoli midweek. The tactician will know that his side’s performance level must be raised if they are to mount a genuine Scudetto challenge regardless of the opposition.

That said, Conte will likely utilize some rotation here, particularly to give some players returning from injuries some minutes to regain their match fitness and form.

Conte’s Inter knows how to deal with deep lying weaker opposition better than the Inter’s of recent history. The one criticism might be that the Nerazzurri are not as able to kill off the opposition and put matches to bed.

Lautaro Martinez will be very eager to get his dry scoring spell broken, and will fancy his chances against the league’s second leakiest defence.

And while Spezia will want to defend deeply but Inter must be weary and aware of their attacking threat in Mbala N’Zola. The French striker has been in great form this season and will be very dangerous on the break.

There’s no doubt Inter go into the match as heavy favourites, but they’ll need to keep their composure and not take anything for granted.

Team News

With Andrea Pinamonti and Alexis Sanchez still out injured, Inter go into the match once again with no real striker on the bench.

Matias Vecino has finally started training individually but is still unavailable for selection as is the case with the out of form Radja Nainggloan.

Probable Inter line-up (3-5-2): Handanovic (C); Bastoni, De Vrij, Skriniar; Kolarov, Vidal, Sensi, Gagliardini, Hakimi; Lautaro, Lukaku

Stats

Last Season: Not played, Spezia in Serie B.

Last 10 Head to Head: This being Spezia’s debut season in the Serie A, there’s no head to head record between the two sides to refer to.

Keep An Eye On

Stefano Sensi: Sensi finally managed to get some substantial minutes against Napoli, and his ability to keep possession and draw out fouls was one of the reasons Inter managed to take the full three points from the match. While Sensi might not actually start the match, expect him to feature for a good part and try to make an impact.

Officials

Referee: Michael Fabbri

Assistants: William Villa and Marco Scatragli.

Fourth Official: Gianluca Aureliano.

VAR: Paolo Valeri and Pasquale De Meo.

Prediction & Concluding Remarks

Prediction & scorers: Inter 4 – 0 With Lautaro, Lukaku, Hakimi and Sensi all among the goalscorers.

Concluding remarks:

Inter cannot underestimate this match or approach it like a forgone conclusion. Spezia will do all they can to defend deep, frustrate the hosts and catch them on the break. Inter must score first and be ruthless once in the lead.