Inter Milan will kick start their Serie A season with a trip to Lecce as the mighty Italians are set to take on the newly promoted side.
Lecce dominated the Serie B last season as they topped the table in the Italian second tier and this will be their 10th promotional campaign in the top tier.
They were relegated in the 2019-20 season and after spending two seasons in the second division they are finally back in the desired land and their priority would be to keep their Serie A status intact.
Marco Baroni’s side plays attacking entertaining football but they have to defy the odds if they are to stay afloat. The Serie B championship was pretty neck to neck as all the first six teams were in contention for promotion.
Lecce maintained their focus throughout the season and they need to better their display in a bid to pose a serious threat to other challengers. They registered a whopping 195 shots on target last season and Massimo Coda was involved in most of that.
The former Lecce forward who recently joined another Italian outfit Genoa netted 20 goals and laid another 10 assists to lead the team towards Serie A.
New arrival Assan Ceesay has big boots to fill as he needs to score on a regular basis to keep his side in the hunt.
Inter Milan narrowly lost the title to archrival AC Milan by a mere two points and they would definitely fancy their chances this season. The Nerazzurri brought back their prodigal child Romelu Lukaku on loan from Chelsea and also signed Joaquin Correa, Andre Onana and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to boost their squad.
They defeated Juventus in both the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana finals but will be eyeing the Serie A title once again. Lukaku’s potential partnership with Lautaro Martinez could again bring back the glory days while Milan Skrinier is likely to stay at the San Siro despite being linked with a move.
Inter thrashed Lecce 4-0 in 2019 and it would take a lot for the visitors to digest a loss.
Lecce vs Inter Milan
Date: 14th August, 2022
Time: 12:15 AM IST
Stadium: Stadio Comunale Via del Mare
Lecce vs Inter Milan
Team News
Lecce
Assan Ceesay and Federico de Francesco will have the onus to test the Inter keeper.
Inter Milan
Among the newcomers only Lukaku is slated to start as Samir Handanovic will be in the goal despite the arrival of Onana.
Lecce Possible Lineup
Falcone; Gendrey, Blin, Dermaku, Gallo; Bistrovic, Hjulmand, Askildsen; Ceesay, Strefezza; Di Francesco
Inter Milan Possible Lineup
Handanovic; Skriniar, De Vrij, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Brozovic, Calhanoglu, Dimarco; Martinez, Lukaku
Predictions
Inter are expected to thrash Lecce in their opening game.
Lecce vs Inter Milan Fantasy XI. No 1
Handanovic, Skrinier, Bastoni, Gallo; Barella, Brozovic, Hjulmand, Bistrovic; Ceesay, Lukaku, Lautaro
Lecce vs Inter Milan Fantasy XI. No 2
Handanovic, Skrinier, Bastoni, Gallo, Blin; Barella, Brozovic, Hjulmand; Ceesay, Lukaku, Lautaro
