Simone Inzaghi admits Alessandro Bastoni could miss the Derby d’Italia and Romelu Lukaku won’t play again for Inter in 2022, but Inter have ‘great respect’ for Juventus.
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 GMT at the Allianz Juventus Stadium in Turin.
The Derby d’Italia is always a massive match and this time both teams are playing catch-up after very poor starts to the Serie A season.
At least the Nerazzurri have qualified for the Champions League Round of 16, whereas Juve dropped into the Europa League play-offs.
“We know what the Derby d’Italia represents, it means a lot to the fans and clubs,” said Inzaghi in his press conference.
“Like Inter, Juve have won five of their last six Serie A games, so they are getting back on track in a passionate atmosphere. We must be mobile off the ball, because Juve have great defenders.”
It is the final call for either of these teams to stay in the Scudetto race?
“There are 25 games to go and in a week the break for the World Cup, so there’s a long way to go yet. It will be very important for both teams, that’s for sure. We respect Juventus and know how strong this team is, as although they had a lot of injuries, they also have a great deal of quality from their youth.
“I have a great deal of respect for Max Allegri, so we must play a wonderful game with quality, hard work and concentration.”
Inter had only just got Lukaku back when he immediately suffered a relapse of that thigh injury, flying back to Belgium for treatment and advice ahead of the World Cup.
“We will play without Lukaku, Danilo D’Ambrosio and possibly without Bastoni, because he had a fever overnight was not able to train today. Lukaku will have tests, but I don’t think there’s any hope of seeing him before the World Cup. It’s a pity for the lad, he worked so hard over the last two months to be ready and unfortunately we’ve been unable to use him.
“What we hope is to finish 2022 well and then start back in 2023 with the whole squad at our disposal, something we haven’t been able to do all season.”
There is some good news for Inzaghi, as he should have Marcelo Brozovic back on the bench tomorrow and the Croatian could even make a late cameo appearance.
“He is such an important player in our system and I’ve been really impressed with how hard he worked over the last two days. I don’t think he can start, but he is fundamental for us.”