Inter, Milan and Napoli: a brutal run of three matches in seven days starts today, due to the rescheduled Matchday 16, which could already prove decisive.
It’s only early January, yet the feeling is that the season is about to enter a potentially decisive phase in the Scudetto race.
Matchday 19, the final round of the first half of the season, kicked off yesterday with valuable and convincing away wins for Como, Roma and Juventus, results that have reignited their ambitions—and their stock—in the race for Champions League qualification.
Starting today, a grueling cycle begins for the top three, all aiming to kick off a decisive surge in the title race by taking advantage of the rescheduled Matchday 16 fixtures (postponed due to their involvement in the Supercoppa in Riyadh), set to be played in a special midweek round next week.
Milan, who this season are not used to such a congested schedule and can benefit from focusing solely on the league, will rely on the unquestioned leadership of their commander Allegri in an attempt to launch the first real push of the campaign. The Rossoneri could also benefit from Sunday night’s head-to-head clash between Inter and Napoli during this packed run.
Tomorrow night at home against Genoa, the opportunity to start on the right foot is tempting—but complacency is a risk. Milan rarely lose, but they have already stumbled several times this season, especially at San Siro, against lower-table sides.
Inter, who have climbed back to the top of the table thanks to a winning streak that began right after the derby defeat, are the form team of the moment and seem to have finally found balance under Chivu. Today’s match in Parma will be a special one for the Nerazzurri coach, as it was in Parma last season that he began his Serie A journey.
Napoli, meanwhile, continue to deal with a critical injury situation. Long-term absentees Lukaku and De Bruyne remain far from a return, and may already be thinking more about the World Cup in the United States than Serie A.
David Neres has recently been added to the injury list. Conte is in desperate need of reinforcements, but the transfer market is effectively frozen—partly due to the massive wages of the two aforementioned players—creating a serious stalemate.
As a result, this three-games-in-seven-days stretch comes at the worst possible time for the Partenopei, especially considering that on Sunday they will have to face Inter at San Siro.
The other two matches in this trilogy, however, are well within Napoli’s reach, starting with today’s home game against Verona and followed by next week’s home fixture against Parma. Winning those two and coming through the San Siro clash unscathed would represent a huge achievement for Napoli.
L’articolo Serie A: no let-up in the schedule proviene da Soccer Made In Italy.
