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Internazionale vs Novara Preview

Gregory Sica, February 11 2012,
Inter Milan will have an ideal opportunity to put an end to a four-game winless streak in all competitions when they take on bottom-placed Novara at the San Siro on Sunday.

Diego Milito is Inter's main man.
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Team News

Inter's chances of rebounding after four consecutive games without a win in all competitions will be significantly boosted by the fact that coach Claudio Ranieri will be able to field a full-strength squad for the clash.

Dutch playmaker Wesley Sneijder has recovered from a leg injury after missing Inter's defeat to Roma last Saturday, and is set to begin the game behind attacker Diego Milito and Giampaolo Pazzini. Ranieri will be delighted with the news that Diego Forlan, Dejan Stankovic and Ricardo Alvarez have recovered from injury layoffs and could take part in the game.

 

The only player in doubt for the match is Argentine defender Walter Samuel, who has yet to fully recover from a muscle problem. His place could be taken by 1.95 metre-tall centre back Andrea Ranocchia.

Meanwhile, Emiliano Mondonico, the coach of Novara, will be unable to count with a trio of players, these being Carlo Alberto Ludi, Francesco Marianini and Japanese striker Takayuki Morimoto.

Form

While Novara's problems are obviously much deeper than that of Inter's, both teams come into the clash in disastrous form. The Nerazzurri will be hoping to rebound from a devastating 4-0 drubbling at the hands of Roma last week.

Prior to that defeat they had fought out a 4-4 draw with Palermo and had suffered a 1-0 loss to Lecce. Their impressive winning streak in all competitions had been put to an abrupt halt by Napoli on January 25, when they were knocked out of the Coppa Italia with a 2-0 defeat at the Stadio San Paolo.

If Inter's problems seem to be rather extensive, what can be said of Novara's? The Biancoazzurri find themselves deep in the relegation zone, with a mere 13 points from 22 league games. They are one of three teams to have yet to win an away game this season and have not won a match since beating Catania 3-2 in late November. Last weekend they fought out a goalless stalemate with Cagliari.

Head-to-head

The only Serie A clash between the sides was played on September 20 of last year, with Novara claiming a historic 3-1 victory over then-world champions Inter Milan. On that occasion,  Marco Rigoni scored twice and Riccardo Meggiorini grabbed Novara's other goal. While Esteban Cambiasso had got on the score-sheet for the visitors.

Prediction

Inter come into the clash as the overwhelming favourites to claim maximum points. The Nerazzurri will be desperate to put an end to their winless streak and it should be a straightforward task against a depleted Novara. While the visitors will be motivated by their defeat over Inter earlier in the season, a similar result seems highly unlikely.

The Verdict:

Inter 3-0 Novara


 

Internazionale vs Novara

Date: Sunday, 12 Feb 2012
Time: 09:00 ( US/Eastern )
Competition: Italy Serie A
Live/Repeat: Live
Venue: Stadio Giuseppe Meazza (Milano)

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