Lazio vs Inter Milan – Betting Tips and Serie A Preview

In recent seasons, the outcome of the Serie A title has been almost a foregone conclusion several weeks before the end of the season with Juventus dominating Italian football. For the current campaign, the situation could not be more different with Lazio and Inter Milan mounting serious challenges to the reigning champions and both boasting long unbeaten sequences in league action. Although Lazio have not beaten Inter on home soil since 2016, they have already claimed victory against Juventus this term at the Stadio Olimpico and will not fear their in-form opponents.

Having lost just two Serie A games all season when beaten twice during August, Lazio have emerged as the surprise contenders to win the title. The Roman team had won ten successive league matches before drawing 1-1 at Roma later last month and then beat SPAL 5-1 before being held 0-0 by a stubborn Hellas Verona outfit which beat Juventus at the weekend. A 1-0 win at Parma in their most recent match ensured that Lazio enter this match just a point adrift of Inter Milan with no Italian team breaching their defence more than once since late November.

For Inter Milan, a midweek 1-0 home defeat by Napoli in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final was a setback, but they now face this additional pressure game with vital league points at stake. Yet Internazionale have yet to lose a domestic game on the road this season and have suffered just a single Serie A loss when beaten 2-1 by Juventus back in early October. Having failed to win just two of their away matches in league action this term, Inter will provide a serious examination for the hosts, but just one clean sheet registered this year is a concern for the visitors.

Team News

A leg muscle injury is troubling Bastos, and he could miss this game for Lazio whereas Senad Lulic (ankle surgery) will be sidelined.

Sami Handanovic (broken finger) was on the substitutes bench in midweek for Inter but is unlikely to start this game. As for other injuries, Roberto Gagliardini (foot) is the only significant casualty and is likely to miss this match.

Prediction

This is a match which neither team dare lose in respect to their title hopes, and it could be a tight affair. Lazio have been involved in several close matches recently with two draws and a couple of single goal margin victories among their last five competitive matches while Inter drew 1-1 on three occasions in Serie A action last month. After failing to beat improving Hellas Verona in their previous home match, Lazio may be forced to settle for another point from this clash and therefore a good bet may be for a Draw priced at 5/2 with Bet365.

A second pick is for Under 2.5 Goals Scored offered at 11/10 by Bet365. There have been two or fewer goals scored in four of the last five Lazio matches, and no team has breached their defence more than once this year. Four clean sheets have also been recorded by the Roman team during 2020. Although Inter Milan can be a capable team in front of goal as proved by scoring four times against Cagliari and AC Milan in recent weeks, they have yet to net more than once in any game against any of the other current top five teams. Furthermore, the reverse fixture finished in a 1-0 win for Inter back in late September.