AS a football supporter, very few things are better than a win in a local derby. Mocking one of your closest rivals as the players leave the field is never the end of the enjoyment, as the next day at school or work allows those well-earned bragging rights to be used in full, fans on the victorious side able to laud it over the losers for the months until the next encounter.
Few such clashes carry the same prestige or evoke as much passion as the ‘Derby della Madonnina.’ That is the name given to meetings between Inter and AC Milan, yet their latest encounter – this coming Sunday at San Siro – is about so much more than local pride, it is a game that could have huge ramifications for both clubs.
Inter are of course locked in a tense title battle with Juventus, going into this weekend three points behind the leaders and aware that, should the Bianconeri beat Hellas Verona on Saturday, that lead could be doubled to six. If it is, Antonio Conte’s men simply cannot afford to lose more ground, making a win against Milan almost essential if they are to to have any hope of toppling the Turin giants at the end of the season.
Derby week! Let’s goo! #DerbyMilano pic.twitter.com/GQOL1Ffz83
— Pazzo (@_FCIM) February 3, 2020
To even get them this close to Juve has been a remarkable accomplishment by the coach, transforming a side who only just scraped into fourth place last term into genuine contenders in a single summer. He has of course done so in the same way he improved all his previous teams; installing his 3-5-2 formation and then filling the lineup with players willing to run relentlessly for 90 minutes.
“Antonio made us take an incredible leap in quality compared to the past,” Inter legend Nicola Berti told Il Giornale when asked about the forthcoming derby. “He has given a winning structure; now we are a real team, united and we can only improve.”
In order to do so, Conte ensured that any dissenting voices were quickly dispatched, Radja Nainggolan, Mauro Icardi and Ivan Perisic all identified as potential trouble-causers and sold before they could disrupt his plans. In their places came hardworking, industrious players like Stefano Sensi, Nicolo Barella and Diego Godin.
Inter also added some genuine quality too, Conte finally getting his chance to work with Romelu Lukaku, a player he tried to sign while at both Juve and Chelsea and who has been reborn under his tutelage. A forlorn figure during his final months at Old Trafford, the Belgian found his best form almost instantly in Milan, already weighing in with 20 goals this term after managing just 15 in 45 appearances for Manchester United last season.
His partnership with Lautaro Martínez has been sensational, but the Argentinian will be suspended this weekend, meaning another new face will be called upon to provide an attacking spark in his first taste of derby action. “Christian Eriksen can give us that little bit extra, he’s been a top player for years,” Sensi told Sky Italia as he discussed the former Spurs midfielder who arrived last month to bolster Inter’s options.
Yet even as they prepare for what is always a difficult encounter, the Nerazzurri will be aware of the increasingly large gulf that exists between themselves and their crosstown rivals. While Inter are chasing the title, eighth-placed Milan are already 19 points behind them and mired in yet another season of mediocrity.
Romelu Lukaku on Zlatan Ibrahimovic:
"Ibra is a champion, I respect him. In Manchester I could train every day with him, that was the most beautiful thing for me, it will be nice to play against him, he's a great champion and professional."
"He’s up there with Ronaldo."
— CaughtOffside (@caughtoffside) February 5, 2020
Marco Giampaolo was supposed to launch a new era in the red-and-black half of the city, but he was sacked after winning just three of the opening seven games of the season. Stefano Pioli replaced him but in truth has fared little better, the team looking bereft of ideas before being completely overhauled once again in January.
It appeared to have worked as Milan began the New Year in impressive fashion, a run of three consecutive wins looking good at first glance, but upon closer inspection a different story is revealed. First was a 2-0 victory over Cagliari who are in free fall and haven’t won a game since December 5, followed by triumphs over relegation-threatened Udinese and a Brescia side who are almost certainly returning to Serie B at the end of the season.
Cup wins over SPAL and Torino add to their seemingly good recent record, but the former are rock bottom of the table while the latter have sacked coach Walter Mazzarri following four consecutive defeats. Milan’s most recent outing came against a Hellas Verona outfit who boast a stout defence and actually sit above the Rossoneri in the table, meaning it was no surprise to see them earn a 1-1 draw at San Siro.
Pioli certainly has his work cut out if he is to take anything positive from this weekend, and he will be acutely aware that Inter won comfortably in the first derby of the season, something Nicola Berti certainly enjoyed. “We are clearly the favourites,” he continued in that aforementioned Il Giornale interview. “We are not afraid of this AC Milan side because they do not have a player who can worry us, not even Zlatan Ibrahimovic. I think we will end up with a clear result in our favour, I will say 3-0 or 3-1!”
That is certainly bold, but the vast differences between the city’s two clubs certainly lend themselves to such an opinion, yet that would make for an even sweeter win for the Rossoneri and their supporters should they manage to pull off an upset.
Whatever happens, Sunday night will be a spectacle, but Monday morning will only be fun for one half of Milan.
