:Headline: Preview: AC Milan vs. Inter Milan - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Monday's Serie A derby between AC Milan and Inter Milan, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Italy's top two go toe to toe in Monday's Derby della Madonnina, as Inter Milan try to claim the Scudetto at the expense of city rivals AC Milan.
The Serie A giants will convene at San Siro for a high-stakes Milan derby, with Inter aiming to secure the title against their old foes for the first time in history.
Match preview
Sitting 14 points above Milan with only six games still to play, irrepressible Inter are now just one win away from being crowned champions in the most special of circ*mstances, and victory on Monday evening would also see them tie Serie A's record for the earliest a team has guaranteed top spot, matching Napoli's feat last year.
Following a 2-2 home draw against Cagliari, which saw Simone Inzaghi's side uncharacteristically relinquish the lead twice, they are unbeaten in 26 league matches, of which they have won 21 - representing the club's fourth-best such streak ever.
Inzaghi is now tantalisingly close to winning his first Scudetto as a manager and going down in history as the orchestrator of Inter's 20th league title: that would see them become just the second Italian club, after Juventus, to wear a cherished second star on their jersey.
While Marcus Thuram and set-piece specialist Hakan Calhanoglu were on target last time out, captain Lautaro Martinez has fired his team this far and is odds-on favourite to be crowned Capocannoniere next month.
Inter have now scored in their last 40 Serie A matches, setting a new club record, and they could yet surpass Juve's all-time total of 44 by the end of this season.
A towering tally of 77 league goals leaves them well clear of next-best Milan (63), while the Rossoneri have also conceded 20 more times than their Nerazzurri rivals.
In addition to such statistical supremacy, Inter have won each of the last five derbies - already a record - and Inzaghi's squad are now just one win away from achieving legendary status in the blue-and-black half of Italy's second city.
Only twice in the Derby della Madonnina's long history has one team suffered six straight losses - and not since the late 1940s - so another defeat is simply unthinkable for Milan on Monday.
Spoiling Inter's party is on the agenda instead; however, two Europa League reverses to Roma over the past couple of weeks have surely dented confidence in the camp.
Painfully beaten by Inzaghi and co in last season's Champions League semi-finals, the Rossoneri were eliminated from Europe by another domestic rival on Thursday, failing to capitalise on their hosts going down to 10 men and slumping to a 3-1 aggregate defeat at Stadio Olimpico.
Having previously been held to an eventful 3-3 draw by Serie A strugglers Sassuolo - when Stefano Pioli's much-changed side trailed by two goals before Rafael Leao sparked a comeback and they ultimately snatched a point - Milan are now winless in three matches.
As Inter are set to claim the Scudetto sooner or later, beating Juventus to finish runners-up is the Rossoneri's remaining objective for the weeks ahead, and they will try to conclude their campaign in style.
With just one loss in their last 17 league matches, averaging 2.2 goals per game, Milan were last beaten in a top-flight fixture back in February, but that does not seem to be sufficient to save Pioli's job.
Expected to depart in the summer, the ex-Inter coach has lost the most matches in Milan derby history, enduring nine defeats so far. Since taking up his current position, the Rossoneri have managed just three wins from 14, so signing off on better terms will be a personal priority for the man who took them to the title two years ago.
AC Milan Serie A form:
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- D
AC Milan form (all competitions):
Inter Milan Serie A form:
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- D
Inter Milan form (all competitions):
- W
- L
- D
- W
- W
- D
Team News
Both Benjamin Pavard and Lautaro Martinez will be back in action after serving one-match bans in Inter's draw against Cagliari; the latter is the Nerazzurri's third-highest scorer in derby history with eight goals - Giuseppe Meazza, after whom San Siro is formally named, leads the way on 12.
Only veteran wing-back Juan Cuadrado is set to be sidelined by injury, so Simone Inzaghi has an almost full hand to choose from ahead of a potentially career-defining contest.
Alexis Sanchez and Yann Bisseck should make way for Martinez and Pavard respectively, but no other changes are expected from the 'away' side at San Siro.
While Martinez is renowned for his prowess in this fixture, Milan's main marksman also enjoys the cut and thrust of derby action, and in his four Serie A matches against Inter to date, Olivier Giroud has scored three goals and provided two assists.
Although he was dropped for Thursday's loss to Roma, Samu Chukwueze is enjoying his best form since signing from Villarreal and could be a contender to support Giroud should Stefano Pioli seek to freshen up his starting XI.
Simon Kjaer was forced off by a flexor problem in Sassuolo, while Malick Thiaw must serve a suspension and Pierre Kalulu is still injured. Therefore, Fikayo Tomori will partner Matteo Gabbia at the heart of the Rossoneri's back four.
AC Milan possible starting lineup:
Maignan; Calabria, Tomori, Gabbia, Hernandez; Bennacer, Reijnders; Pulisic, Loftus-Cheek, Leao; Giroud
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
We say: AC Milan 1-2 Inter Milan
A significant moment in the 114-year history of the Milan clubs' rivalry is in prospect on Monday evening, when the chance to secure an unforgettable Scudetto should drive Inter on to beat the old enemy for a sixth straight time.
While tough to take for the Rossoneri, that would prove fitting reward for the Nerazzurri's superb Serie A season.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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