Serie A: The Scudetto Race Heads to Milan

Inter Milan vs Napoli

Serie A football is back with a bang on Sunday when title rivals Inter Milan and Napoli go head to head at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium in a must-not-lose game for the visitors.

I Nerazzurri are top of the Serie A table on 42 points, three clear of AC Milan in second and four ahead of Napoli. This is the type of game Napoli boss Antonio Conte relishes. The tactical master will do all he can to get into the head of his opposite number Cristian Chivu, but the pressure is certainly on the visiting boss.

Lose this match and Napoli are staring at a seven-point gap, and that would shift the Serie A 2026 betting odds all the way to Milan, and the dream of a third Scudetto in four seasons would become very faint.

I Nerazzurri are looking for a fourth successive league victory post-Christmas and come into this game on the back of a 2-0 win away to Parma. Meanwhile, Napoli followed up two away victories with a draw at home to Hellas Verona, a result which slowed their momentum, and Conte will do all he can to avoid his team grinding to a halt in Milan.

 

Talking Points

Chivu will play all his cards against Napoli

While the Napoli boss won’t let his players shirk from their task, his opposite number knows how important a win would be for his team, and he will call on his biggest guns to get the job done. Skipper Lautaro Martinez is, once again, leading from the front, scoring the winner against Atalanta in Inter’s first game after Christmas, and again in a 3-1 beating of Bologna.

With 10 league goals, the Argentine is leading the race for the Capocannoniere, two goals clear of AC Milan’s Christian Pulisic. And his strike partner Marcus Thuram has suddenly hit form too, bagging a goal in each of the last three games to make it six for the campaign.

Nicola Barella, Piotr Zielinski, and Hakan Calhanoglu will provide support from the midfield, with a centre-back pairing of Alessandro Bastoni and Manuel Akanji. Inter have a side packed with experience and world-class quality, and Chivu is looking for them to assert themselves over the reigning champions.           

 

McTominay is still Napoli’s go-to man

Now I’m certainly not suggesting that Napoli are overly dependent on one star. Conte has a talented and deep squad, but if 2025 Player of the Year Scott McTominay became sidelined, for whatever reason, that would be a huge blow to Napoli’s title defence. The former Manchester United star has been a leader for club and country with his all-action displays, combining superb positional sense, tough tackling, strong running, and an eye for goal.

After Napoli went 2-0 down at the break against Verona, he inspired the hosts’ comeback with a strike soon after the break, and Giovani Di Lorenzo grabbed a point with a late equaliser. After winning away to Cremonese and Lazio, both 2-0, these were two points dropped but certainly a potentially crucial point saved. And now I Partenopei will look to kick on. 

They will have to do so without the long-term absentees Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, and Rasmus Hojlund, on loan from Manchester United, will continue up front. The 22-year-old Danish striker, who made his name at Atalanta, is enjoying his football back in Italy and is top scoring with six goals after bagging a brace against Cremonese, and he’ll have a good tussle with Bastoni. 

This is a big game too for Slovakian midfielder Stanislav Lobotka who, alongside McTominay, will look to stamp his authority in the battle for midfield.                

 

History

The head-to-head results between Inter and Napoli could not be closer, with 15 wins each from the last 44 games, and 14 draws. At the Giuseppe Meazza, the relationship has been more one-sided with 11 wins for I Nerazzurri and three for I Partenopei, while there have been five draws.

When the two teams met in Naples in October, Conte’s men ran out 3-1 winners, with goals from De Bruyne, McTominay, and Frank Anguissa, with Hakan Calhanoglu replying for Inter.

The three previous encounters all ended in a 1-1 draw.  

With four wins, one draw and one defeat, Inter’s recent form is a little stronger than Napoli’s three wins, one draw, and two defeats. But the visitors are unbeaten in four, so there is little to choose between them again.    

 

Betting Tip

Inter are strong favourites at SBOTOP odds of 1.75 to win this six-pointer, and all eyes will be on the Sunday night Serie A 2026 updates to see if Napoli can blow the title race open again.

The visitors are priced at 4.75 to win and 3.50 to draw, and while Conte will have his side well regimented, I suspect they will go out on the attack and I’m hoping for goals.     

   

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