Cagliari vs Inter Milan
Inter Milan head to Sardinia on Sunday in a quest to continue their challenge at the top of Serie A, and anything less than a victory over hosts Cagliari will be a big disappointment.
Antonio Conte’s Inter are currently in second place in the league, five points behind leaders AC Milan, and a point ahead of Juventus and Napoli. I Nerazzurri heads to Cagliari at a time when Eusebio Di Francesco’s team is depleted by injury and illness, so current form and resources play heavily in the visitors’ favour.
Talking Points
No European distraction for Inter
It may not seem like it at the moment, but Inter Milan’s failure to make it past the group stages of the Champions League could turn out to be an advantage back home. I Nerazzurri played out a 0-0 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday night, and Real Madrid’s win over Borussia Monchengladbach meant that both Inter and the Ukranian side crashed out. Shakhtar has the consolation of a Europa League place while Inter has the advantage of a less congested fixture list.
It was a case of ‘what might have been’ for Conte’s men, particularly for striker Lautaro Martinez who hit the crossbar and missed a few chances, but now they can concentrate on the league, where they have been going along quite nicely with four wins and two draws from the last six games. A recent 3-0 win away to Sassuolo reasserted Inter’s title credentials, which are backed up by an impressive front line, with Romelu Lukaku, Ivan Perisic and Alexis Sanchez all in good form. Meanwhile, creative midfielder Christian Eriksen is still out in the cold. He made an injury time appearance as substitute in Inter’s victory over Bologna last week, and he appeared again with five minutes to play against Shakhtar; he looks to be on his way out of the club.
Unusually, the Serie A 2020 betting odds are no nearer to picking a Scudetto winner than they were at the beginning of the season, in fact they are probably further away! Four teams are in it, there’s a similar position in England’s Premier League, which is good news for SBOTOP fans. The four to go at in Italy are the two Milan clubs, Inter are outright favourites at odds of 3.03 while current leaders AC Milan are at 4.00. Juventus, after a stuttering start are at 3.25 with Napoli right in the hunt at 6.50.
Inter is the only team of the four without European interest.
Since defeat in the Milan derby, in mid-October, I Nerazzurri’s Serie A 2020 results have been steadily improving and I see no reason why that shouldn’t continue in Sardinia.
COVID hit Cagliari
Having finished the 2019/20 season comfortably in 14th place Cagliari made a solid good start to the new campaign, but without a win in three games the Sardinians could be on the slide. Head coach Di Francesco has a selection problem with his most experienced sidelined with COVID 19. Centre back Diego Godin tested positive on return from international duty with Uruguay and he has been absent over the past two weeks along with international colleague Nahitan Nandez.
Another three players have been struck by the disease, including star striker Giovanni Simeone who tested positive before Cagliari’s Coppa Italia match with Hellas Verona. Simeone has scored five league goals and is a big miss, and while I Rossoblu are depleted Di Francesco must hope he has no other casualties before the weekend, and that the form of Joao Pedro, who has six goals already this season, continues to give his side a fighting chance against the title chasers.
History
I Nerazzurri have dominated the past meetings between these two sides, winning 24 and drawing 15 of the 46 games played since 1993, while Cagliari have won just seven.
And recent form favours the visitors who have won five from six and the last three in succession, while Cagliari have been struggling for form and results over the past three games.
Betting Tip
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Cagliari vs Inter Milan | Inter Milan Asian Handicap -1.25 @ 1.79 |
| December 13, 19:30 (GMT+8) |
In most circumstances you would expect Inter Milan to be too strong for Cagliari, but this weekend the balance will be tipped even further towards the visitors. Cagliari are at odds of 6.95 to win with the draw at 4.94, while Inter are hotly fancied at odds of 1.35.
Shock results do happen, but two factors make me believe we won’t see one in Sardinia. Firstly Cagliari are without their defensive rock Godin, among other players, and then, Inter are out of Europe, they will be smarting and in a ruthless mood…and they have the players.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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