Inter Milan vs Lazio preview, H2H, team news, line-ups and prediction

Inter Milan will hope to win their final home game of the season when they host Lazio at San Siro on Sunday. 

Having secured their 20th Scudetto title, Inter will be looking to finish the season on a high with two matches left. The Nerazzuri have had an absolute impeccable season winning 29 matches and scoring a sky-high 86 goals in the Serie A this season.

Simone Inzaghi’s side have scored a total of 101 goals this season across all competitions, marking the fifth straight season where Inter have achieved a century of goals in all competitions.

They have amassed 92 points so far this season and winning their last two matches will see them surpass the previous club record of 97 points set in the 2006-07 campaign.

With 21 clean sheets this season, Inter are looking to tally Juventus and AC Milan’s record of 22 clean sheets in a single campaign and could even proceed to set a new record of 23 clean sheets in the Italian top flight if they secure clean sheets in their remaining two matches against Lazio and Hellas Verona.

After a disappointing 1:0 loss against 19th-placed Sassuolo, Inter made sure they bounced back in style to make up for their loss when they travelled to Stadio Benito Stirpe to face Frosinone.

The Giallazzurri came out with much intent, showcasing an array of attacking displays that saw them hit the woodwork. As the first half wore on, Inter began to exert dominance and found the opener in the 19th minute through Davide Frattesi.

Marko Arnautovic marked his third League goal of the season when he doubled Inter’s lead with a brilliant first-time finish before Tajon Buchanan, Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram ensured Inter’s biggest win margin this season.

They now gear up to face an in form Lazio side who have found their foot in recent weeks after a poor start to the season.

Earlier this year, Lazio parted ways with former manager, Mauricio Sarri after a poor run of form that saw the Biancocelesti sit in ninth place after five defeats in six games. Croatian manager, Igor Tudor was appointed in March to take over the reins at Stadio Olimpico and the Croatian manager has turned the tide around at the club as they are one point away from securing a spot in Europe next season.

Tudor has overseen seven matches in the Serie A since his appointment, securing five wins and one draw. His only loss in the League came against City rivals Roma whom they are looking to usurp to secure a spot in Europe.

While Lazio are on a six-game unbeaten streak across all competitions, Lazio are currently embarking on an abysmal run of form against Inter, losing four consecutive matches at San Siro with an aggregate scoreline of 9-3.

With a League-high 16 points from six matches, Lazio are level with Inter for the most number of accrued points in that run and will look to make a statement win when they face their former Boss, Inzaghi on Sunday.

In their last Serie A outing, Lazio proved too strong for Empoli as goals from Patric and Matias Vecino secured all three points for the Biancocelesti who now sit in seventh place on 59 points.

Inter Milan vs Lazio match details 

• Date: Sunday, 19 May 2024
• Location: Location: Milan, Italy
• Stadium: San Siro
• Kick-off time: 4:00 PM UTC, 5:00 PM BST
• Referee: Juan Luca Sacchi
• Tickets: You can buy Inter Milan vs Lazio tickets through the club channels or via trusted resellers like Seatsnet.com.

Match stats and head-to-head 

• Both teams have met 72 times and are both closely tied to each other with the number of wins. Inter slightly holds the upper hand with 26 wins while Lazio have secured 25 wins and both teams have tied 21 times.

• Inter’s 92 points is the most they’ve acquired since establishing a new club record of 97 points in the 2006-07 season.

• Inter have kept the most clean sheets in Serie A this season with 22 clean sheets. With two matches left, one more clean sheet will see them tally with Milan and Juventus with the most number of clean sheets in Serie A history while two more clean sheets will see the Nerazzuri hold the new record for the most number of clean sheets in the Italian top-flight.

• Victory for the Nerazzuri will see Inter achieve their first League double over Lazio for the first time in seven years.

• Lazio enter this game at the back of just two defeats in their last ten matches across all competitions.

• Since the appointment of Tudor, the Biancocelesti have amassed 16 points from seven matches. The only teams to accrue a similar amount of points in their last seven matches are Inter and Atalanta.

• Martinez has netted 24 goals in Serie A this season and is on course to become the third Nerazzuri player this century to net at least 25 goals in a single campaign since Mauro Icardi (29 goals in 2017-18) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (25 goals in 2008-09) seasons.

• Lazio forward, Felipe Anderson will be hoping to net his seventh goal against Inter in his 250th appearance in Serie A. He previously scored six goals against the Nerazzuri including a memorable brace in 2014 at San Siro.

Team news 

For the home side, Francesco Acerbi is a doubt to face his former club and is in a tight race to be fit to face his former club on Sunday.

Other than Acerbi, Inzaghi has a fully fit squad to choose from and could hand fringe players some minutes in the game.

While opportunities will be handed to fringe players, the Italian manager will still utilise some of his strongest players in a bid to finish his last home game of the season on a high.

The likes of Alessandro Bastoni, and Benjamin Pavard are set to retain their place in defence while Hakan Calhanoglu and Frattesi could be slotted into midfield.

Martinez is tipped to return to the starting lineup to form a front pair with Thuram.

For Lazio, first-choice goalkeeper, Ivan Provedel has recovered from injury and is available for selection. However, Christos Mandas has been impressive in goal for Lazio and it remains to be seen who Tudor will utilise between the sticks in the must-win match against Inter on Sunday.

Centre-back, Alessio Romagnoli is suspended for this clash and either Nicolo Casale or Mario Gila will be called upon to replace the 29-year-old in defence.

Predicted starting line-ups:

Inter Milan predicted starting lineup:

Sommer; Pavard, De Vrij, Bastoni; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Frattesi, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez.

Lazio predicted starting lineup:

Mandas; Patric, Gila, Hysaj; Lazzari, Kamada, Guendouzi, Marusic; Anderson, Zaccagni; Immobile.

Prediction

One would expect Inter to drop the heat after securing the Scudetto but the 5:0 win over Frosinone is a big statement that the Nerazzuri are not looking to take their foot off the pedestal.

With a chance of ending the season with a win in front of the home fans, Inzaghi will utilise his best side in the match to secure Inter’s first double over the Biancocelesti.

On the other hand, Lazio are in a strong run of form and are very solid defensively while also being prolific in attack. They are in more need of the points and will put up a fight against Inter.

We’re predicting a 2:2 draw