Legendary former Inter and Juventus striker Alessandro Altobelli feels that whichever of the Nerazzurri and the Bianconeri loses in Sunday’s Serie A clash will be out of the Serie A title race.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster ADNKronos, Altobelli gave the view that the Derby D’Italia is virtually must-win as a loss in particular could put either team too far back to claw their way back into Scudetto contention.
Inter are six points back from AC Milan and three behind Napoli in the table, while they go into the weekend just one point ahead of Juventus, albeit with a game in hand on all three.
The Nerazzurri could keep pace at the top and keep the Bianconeri at bay with a win, and even a draw would at least see them maintain third spot and keep them a little closer at the top.
A loss, however, would see Inter fall into fourth place, losing further momentum in their title chase, and for the Bianconeri it would be even more damaging and leave them with a lot of ground to make up with just a few weeks to go.
“Woe to the losers on Sunday,” he said. “Whoever loses is out of the race for the Scudetto. Before the break, the Bianconeri were in full flow, while the Nerazzurri were facing a very bad run of form, but maybe the break’s changed things.”
“We hope that Simone Inzaghi gets Marcelo Brozovic back,” he went on, characterizing the midfielder as “a fundamental player for the Italian champions.”
As for a prediction Altobelli said “Impossible to say even though I hope Inter win, my heart is more Nerazzurri as I was there for eleven years while I only played one season at Juve.”
