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2023/24 Italian Serie A
Matchday 19
Inter Milan v Verona
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza
Milan, Italy
Saturday, 6 January 2024
Kick-off is at 13h30
Serie A leaders Inter Milan will target a return to winning ways when they take on relegation-threatened Verona at the San Siro on Saturday, January 6 in the early kick-off.
The Nerazzurri saw their lead cut down to two points after being held to a 1-1 draw by Genoa at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on December 29 as second-placed Juventus beat Roma 1-0 in Turin the following day to capitalise on their slip-up.
However, Simone Inzaghi's side remain unbeaten in their last 12 league outings despite the stalemate in Milan halting a four-match winning streak, while Juve are on an equally good run of form.
The top two have opened up a comfortable gap to the chasing pack, with AC MIlan seven points adrift of the Bianconeri in third position following their 1-0 win over Sassuolo on December 30 and Fiorentina a further three points back in fourth spot after they beat Torino by the same scoreline.
Alamy Stock Photo
The Gialloblu (17th) are perched on the edge of the drop zone and find themselves tied with Cagliari (18th) on 14 points after a 1-0 defeat to rock-bottom Salernitana on December 30 - their 10th loss of the season.
The bottom-three clubs all gained ground on Marco Baroni's side, with the Sardinians and Empoli (19th) having played out to a 0-0 draw on matchday 18 and the Granata's win taking them to 12 points.
In team news, Inter are sweating on the fitness of captain Lautaro Martinez, who is rated doubtful with a thigh injury. Federico Dimarco (thigh) is closing in on his return, but Juan Cuadrado (Achilles) remains a long-term absentee. Baroni has a clean bill of health for the trip to MIlan.
Inzaghi wasn't happy with the defending that led to Genoa's equaliser on the stroke of half-time, just three minutes after Marko Arnautovic had given Inter the lead.
"I can't blame the guys for anything, but after we went ahead we shouldn't have conceded in injury time," he told DAZN.
"The guys gave everything they had. We'll end 2023 in a great place in a table, but also knowing that matches like this have big pitfalls.
"We hadn't conceded from a set-piece before this evening. We had to defend better. And then after we conceded, it changed the way that the second half went."
Baroni admits a change in system has helped them improve in performances if not results, although he could opt to employ a back-three again in the future as he feels the formation gave them balance.
"I came here to make changes. We went through some difficult stretches and we were forced to adjust and make changes," he said.
"We started off well in Coppa Italia and in the first league fixtures, then we understood we needed to make some changes. I'm not used to make changes on a weekly basis, but in the future maybe we encounter situations in which we'll need to go back to play with a back-three defense.
"The actual system gave us more balance and more ability on offense. Now we have improved, but the path is still long. We have to keep working like this, every day."
Head-to-Head (Last Five Serie A Meetings)
Matches - 5
Inter Milan - 5
Verona - 0
Draws - 0
Serie A Matchday 19 fixtures:
Friday, January 5
21h45: Bologna v Genoa
Saturday, January 6
13h30: Inter Milan v Verona
16h00: Frosinone v Monza
19h00: Lecce v Cagliari
21h45: Sassuolo v Fiorentina
Sunday, January 7
13h30: Empoli v AC Milan
16h00: Torino v Napoli
16h00: Udinese v Lazio
19h00: Salernitana v Juventus
21h45: Roma v Atalanta
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