Supercharged Serie A Sunday puts focus on front-runners Inter
>> MILAN: Napoli host Roma and Fiorentina are away to Juventus in a supercharged Serie A weekend in which all four title contenders will have one eye on leaders Inter Milan.
Although designed to provide some pre-festive thrills, the penultimate round of games before the league stops for the winter break has been made even more enticing by the current state of affairs in Italy’s top flight.
Inter travel to Udinese today with a one-point lead on Fiorentina, with Napoli two points behind and Roma in fourth at five points off the pace. Champions Juventus are only onepoint behind Roma in sixth.
Inter could go four points clear of Fiorentina with a win today but their trip to the Friuli comes with a twist, 38-year-old striker Antonio Di Natale hinting on Wednesday it could be his last home game for the club that has been his home since 2004.
“The fans are always behind us and always fill the stadium. I want to show my thanks in our last home game of the year by giving them a special gift on Saturday,” said Di Natale.
Inter have scored the fewest goals (18) from the top six teams, but Roberto Mancini’s men have conceded only nine times in 15 games and their reverse at Napoli a fortnight ago was their lone defeat in nine successive outings.
Napoli host Roma tomorrow in the ‘Derby del Sole’, with the hosts firm favourites at the San Paolo three days after hammering Legia Warsaw 5-2 in the Europa League to record six wins out of six in the group stage.
Roma, unconvincing in a 1-1 Champions League draw at home to BATE Borisov on Wednesday that secured passage to the last 16, travel south on the back of a league defeat to Atalanta and last week’s 1-1 draw at Torino — and likely to be without injury-hit Ivorian Gervinho.
A Roma defeat at the San Paolo could allow Juventus to continue their climb back up the table with a sixth consecutive win of the season, but the visit of Fiorentina looks anything but simple for Massimiliano Allegri’s men.
Juventus have already lost away to Roma and Napoli and, four days after a 1-0 Champions League defeat away to Sevilla, would lose more face with a home defeat to Paulo Sousa’s highflyers from Florence.