Inter are in pole position to win this season’s Serie A title, according to former Juventus and Napoli midfielder Michele Pazienza.
The Nerazzurri are one point behind league leaders AC Milan as the league prepares to resume with a full round of fixtures on Sunday.
Pazienza believes Inter’s surprise elimination from the UEFA Champions League group stage makes them favourites heading into the New Year.
He told TMW Radio: “At the moment I think they’re ahead.
“Juventus could be penalised by the fact they’re starting a new cycle and are still very much involved in the Champions League.
“Milan are the revelation of the season, a very young team with an important project but which is still at the very beginning.
“I didn’t expect them to have these results right from the start but I have great admiration for Stefano Pioli, who is doing an excellent job.”
Antonio Conte’s side will be looking for an eighth consecutive league win against Crotone, before matches against Sampdoria and Roma later in the week.
Their final win of 2020 came away at Hellas Verona thanks to second-half goals from Lautaro Martinez and Milan Skriniar.
Pazienza also played for Udinese and was asked for a comment on the Zebrette’s highly-touted midfielder Rodrigo De Paul, who has been linked with a move to Inter in recent weeks.
“De Paul is a modern midfielder who combines both sides of the game with the same quality,” he said.
“He’s a player that would be useful for any team and clearly for Juventus too.”
De Paul has scored three goals and provided two assists so far this season for Luca Gotti’s side.
