Coppa Italia Preview: Inter - Juventus
What: Coppa Italia, Quarter-Final, First Leg
When: Wednesday, January 23, 21:00 (CET)
Where: Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, Milan
Unlucky Number 13 For Inter?
Inter come into this game off the back of a simply incredible 13 consecutive victories in all competitions.
The most recent of these, against Parma on Sunday evening was achieved in the most dramatic of circumstances. The Nerazzurri were trailing 2-1 at San Siro as the game moved into its closing stages, when they were awarded a dubious 88th penalty for a handball on the line by Fernando Couto.
Couto received his marching orders, Zlatan Ibrahimovic converted the spot-kick, and the Swede would then go on to grab a sensational winner deep into stoppage time to clinch a 3-2 victory.
Regardless of the controversial nature of their latest success, Inter must certainly be applauded for the mental strength they possess in their squad. They will be looking to make it 14 wins on the bounce on Wednesday evening when they host bitter rivals Juventus in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals.
In the previous round Inter showed just how strong their squad is by thumping Reggina 7-1 on aggregate, despite fielding a team made up of youngsters and reserves in both legs.
It remains to be seen if Mancini will opt to play the likes of hot young prospects Mario Balotelli and Franceso Bolzoni again this midweek.
Slow Star To 2008 For Juve
After an impressive end to 2007 which had seen them rack up three consecutive victories in Serie A, Juventus have made a lethargic start to the New Year.
First of all they drew 1-1 away at Catania, only earning a point due to a controversial late penalty from Alessandro Del Piero. They then overcame Empoli 5-3 in the Coppa Italia second leg after a see-saw battle in Turin. Finally they were involved in a goalless stalemate with Sampdoria last Sunday afternoon.
The match with Samp was a particularly frustrating affair as Juve dominated the first half, with David Trezeguet hitting the bar, having an effort cleared off the line, and Marco Marchionni missing an open goal. At half time Coach Claudio Ranieri inexplicably opted to replace Alessandro Del Piero with Vincenzo Iaquinta and the Bianconeri were then dreadfully poor from that point forward, failing to create a single chance in the second period.
If there was ever a chance for Juventus to gain a morale and energy boost it will be on Wednesday against Inter. The two sides have developed into the bitterest of enemies following the Calciopoli crisis, and even though the Coppa Italia is not highly regarded in Italy, you can rest assured that this game certainly won’t have a friendly feel to it.
This was exemplified in the meeting between the sides in Serie A at the beginning of November, when Giorgio Chiellini handed out some real rough treatment to former Bianconero Ibrahimovic. Luis Figo also fractured his leg following a challenge from Pavel Nedved as the game in Turin finished 1-1.
There could be fireworks again on Wednesday night at San Siro.
FORM GUIDE
Inter
20/01 (Serie A) Inter 3-2 Parma
17/01 (Coppa Italia) Inter 3-0 Reggina
13/01 (Serie A): Siena-Inter 2-3
23/12 (Serie A): Inter-Milan 2-1
19/12 (Coppa Italia): Reggina-Inter 1-4
Juventus
20/01 (Serie A) Juventus 0-0 Sampdoria
15/12 (Coppa Italia) Juventus 5-3 Empoli
12/01 (Serie A) Catania 1-1 Juventus
23/12 (Serie A) Juventus 2-0 Siena
15/12 (Serie A) Lazio 2-3 Juventus
TEAM NEWS
Inter
It remains to be seen whether Mancini decides to employ his youngsters and reserves like he did in the last round against Reggina, or incorporate a few first-choice stars. Francesco Toldo, Luis Figo, Olivier Dacourt, Walter Samuel, Maicon, and Dejan Stankovic are definitely unavailable due to injury. Nicolas Burdisso and Christian Chivu are doubts.
Juventus
Claudio Ranieri has made no qualms that he wants to win this competition and this could be seen by the team he put out against Empoli last week. Jorge Andrade, Jonathan Zebina, Giorgio Chiellini, Mauro Camoranesi, and Emanuele Belardi are all sidelined, while Pavel Nedved and Alessandro Del Piero may be rested.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Inter – Mario Balotelli
Balotelli (pictured above) is not guaranteed to start the game but he certainly should feature at some point. The 17-year-old is certainly a star of the future so watch this space.
Juventus – Vincenzo Iaquinta
Iaquinta was desperately disappointing after coming on as a half-time substitute against Sampdoria at the weekend. The forward will be desperate to make amends on Wednesday.
PREDICTION
It is always difficult to make predictions in the Coppa Italia but the fact that Juve will probably play more first-teamers than Inter should ensure that this match finishes in a draw. Expect to see a red card or two, and a penalty or two as well. Whichever way they go, it will make headlines.
Inter 1-1 Juventus
goal.com
Buy on AliExpress.com
