A derby in a cup final always makes for a tension-packed rollercoaster of emotions, and the Italian Super Cup promises to deliver just that. Serie A champions AC Milan will face last season’s Coppa Italia winners, Inter, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on January 18. Our job is to make you privy to the details that might make or break both teams’ hopes of clinching this mid-season trophy.
The last time Milan and Inter went toe to toe in the Italian Super Cup was in 2011. Played in Beijing, China, the game saw Wesley Sneijder open the scoring with a superb free-kick before Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Kevin-Prince Boateng turned the game on its head. Twelve years later, the talismanic Swede still wears the Rossoneri colours, although he won’t feature in the match due to injury.
AC MILAN
The Rossoneri’s latest result, a 2-2 draw against Roma, leaves much to be desired. Having controlled the game in its entirety, AC Milan’s Stefano Pioli made baffling changes to the midfield, allowing Roma enough control to peg back the Milanese side. This is not the first time that the Italian tactician has played with fire—last week against Salernitana, Pioli made the same changes and almost lost his team’s control of an otherwise healthy 2-0 lead. Up against city rivals Inter, Pioli cannot afford any myopic mishaps.
When it comes to big games, teams always rely on big-moment players. Luckily for AC Milan, Olivier Giroud definitely fits the bill, having scored a critical brace in last season’s derby, as well as one goal in this season’s 3-2 derby win. However, having played almost an entire World Cup tournament as a starter, the Frenchman hasn’t yet found his goal-scoring boots this year—fatigue definitely has something to do with his recent lacklustre performances.
LV BET is pricing AC Milan to keep a clean sheet by half-time at 3/4 (1.75) and AC Milan to be in front by half-time at 12/5 (3.40). AC Milan to win the game 2-1 is valued at 9 (10.00).
INTER
Inter suffered a similar fate to AC Milan in its last game out to Monza, conceding deep in stoppage time to tie things at 2-2. After Inter’s halt to Napoli’s unbeaten run last Wednesday, Nerazzurri fans awaited a pedal-to-the-metal blast towards the top of the table, especially since Inter’s fixtures don’t seem like tough tests on paper. Nevertheless, squandering two points at Monzo was certainly not in Simone Inzaghi’s plans, and with Romelu Lukaku seemingly far from his best, the Italian manager will have to iron out a solid game plan to face rivals AC Milan.
Last year’s Super Cup ended well for Inter, as they managed to edge past Juventus 2-1 in extra time to clinch the trophy. Replicating that performance will be Inter’s main goal, but to do that, the Nerazzurri will have to tie things up at the back and maintain a high level of concentration. Allowing any last-minute slip-ups would mean losing out on silverware, and with a good 10 points away from first-placed Napoli, Inter will have to take what they can.
Inter winning the match 2-1 is priced at 8 (9.00), whereas Inter being the only team to score is at 61/15 (5.05). Inter keeping a clean sheet is valued at 11/4 (3.75).
LV BET
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*Odds subject to change. Odds correct at time of publishing