Inter will face Napoli at San Siro on Sunday for what is expected to be one of the most heated clashes of the season as Simone Inzaghi's side will have the first opportunity to overtake Napoli and become the new Serie A leaders, with the chance to defend their 2023-24 Serie A title. The Nerazzurri had some ups and down during the start of the new season but were able to win eight of the last 10 games in all competitions, including the 1-0 win against Arsenal on Wednesday. On the other side, the Azzurri were the most solid team in the league as they are leading the table but last week Atalanta won 3-0 at the Stadio Maradona and put their uncertainties back and will give Inter the opportunity to overtake them if they win on Sunday.
However, all the eyes will mainly be on the comebacks of two of the most dividing figures of the recent Inter past: Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku will make his second comeback in front of his former fans after the one of last season when he was at AS Roma and was whistled by the whole stadium while Antonio Conte will face Inter for the first time since he left the Nerazzurri in the summer 2021. Here's what you need to look for on Sunday:
How to watch Inter vs. Napoli
- Date: Sunday, Nov. 10 | Time: 2:45 p.m. ET
- Location: San Siro -- Milan, Italy
- Live stream: Paramount+
- Odds: Inter -115; Draw +260; Napoli +300
Lukaku's comeback
Big Rom is back at San Siro on Sunday after what was one of the most heated encounters of the recent past in the Italian Serie A. Lukaku played at Inter under Antonio Conte's management from 2019 to 2021 when he won the Scudetto before leaving the Italian giants to join Chelsea for a club record $115 million fee after promising to stay. Inter fans pardoned him one year later when he joined the Nerazzurri for a season-long loan. Under coach Inzaghi, Lukaku had some injury issues that forced him to be sidelined for a long time, while former Inter striker Edin Dzeko gained the starting role in some key games, including the 2023 Champions League final, a 1-0 loss to Manchester City. In the summer of 2023, Inter and Chelsea agreed to a deal for a permanent move, but Lukaku decided to reject Inter's bid despite his initial will. That decision became public quite soon and created a lot of disappointment among club directors and the fans, as the Belgian later on agreed for another season loan and joined his former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho at AS Roma. Inter ended up dominating the season and won their first Scudetto under coach Inzaghi, with Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram leading the attack.
On October 2023, Lukaku made his comeback at San Siro, with the fans ready to show their disappointment to their former soccer idol. Inter fans felt betrayed twice by Lukaku, especially the second time as it happened a few months after accepting a return to the club. Lukaku never explained his point of view of the story and left many fans still particularly bothered by that unexpected farewell. The Inter vs. AS Roma game was a disaster for Lukaku as he barely touched the ball and was not even considered by his former teammates, starting from his attacking partner Lautaro who didn't even look in his eyes when the two met before the game. As the game went on, every time he was around the action, all the 70,000 fans whistled him. At minute 70, Thuram scored the deciding goal of the match. Who, if not him?
Now Lukaku is at Napoli, playing again for Conte. Things are looking better for the striker, gaining his best form over the last week and will play for the second time against his former club and fans, who are ready to show again their disappointment. Napoli fans, on the other hand, hope he will be able to handle it better compared to the last meeting and possibly score in what would be an iconic moment for his career.
All eyes on Conte
As it happened last time when Lukaku played Inter at San Siro, there is also a former Nerazzurri manager sitting on the bench. Last year, Jose Mourinho was the Roma coach and was greeted with applauses and chants by the Inter supporters who always remember the Mourinho era as the most winning and exciting when he was able to win the treble during the 2009-10 season. Despite winning the 2021 Scudetto, the first one since Mourinho, it will probably be different for Conte. The Italian manager left some broken hearts among the Nerazzurri fans, but not all. In fact, some didn't really embrace the Conte mentality and also the fact he was a Juventus icon before joining Inter in the summer of 2019. The Italian always admitted he could manage any club, even when he was at Juve.
Former Juventus CEO and current Nerazzurri president Beppe Marotta wanted Conte as the man to rebuild Inter's winning mentality in the quickest time possible. Conte did it, in his own way. In his two seasons at Inter, he won one Scudetto and lost one Europa League final and created the solid base that helped the current manager Inzaghi to build the recent success. A few days after winning the title, Conte left Inter after some disagreements with the owners as the Nerazzurri were forced to make some outgoings to recover after the Covid outbreak caused financial issues. In that summer, Inter sold both Achraf Hakimi to PSG and Lukaku to Chelsea, while they appointed Inzaghi as Conte's successor.
Most of the Inter fans are grateful to Conte and the job he's done and will probably show that on Sunday before the game. Others might not, but Conte is well respected among the Inter community and also by his former players, who are now more than happy to work with Inzaghi as they did over the last three years.
Can Inter overtake Napoli?
Despite what will happen outside the pitch, Inter have the big chance to overtake Napoli and become the new Serie A leaders for the first time this year. Apart from the 4-4 draw against Juventus, Inzaghi's side won their last nine games, including the 1-0 away win against AS Roma and most notably the recent 1-0 win against Arsenal in the last home Champions League game. By winning on Sunday, Inter can put themselves in the best spot to defend the championship after a not-so-easy start to the season.