The Derby d'Italia between Juventus and Inter Milan is one of Italy's oldest and fiercest rivalries, and definitely the most intense rivalry between teams from different cities. While it's upstaged on the international stage by the Derby della Madonnina between Inter Milan and AC Milan, and to a lesser extent by the Derby della Capitale between Roma and Lazio, this age-old battle between Inter and Juventus pits arguably the two biggest teams in Italy in a match that's always well worth watching.
Juventus vs. Inter Milan 2015 live stream: Start time, TV schedule and how to watch online
The Derby d’Italia is back, and it has more meaning this season than it has in years.
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The name literally means “the Derby of Italy,” an appropriate title for a match between the country’s two most successful teams. Inter are tied with recently caught up Milan on 18 Serie A titles, while Juventus have 31 titles to their name -- though the number is 33 if you ask a Juve fan thanks to the titles stripped after the calciopoli scandal. That makes this match an incredibly big deal, because in a very real way it represents a battle for Italian supremacy no matter where Inter and Juve are in the table.
In recent years, this has been a derby dominated by Juventus, much the same as the bianconeri have dominated the league to the tune of four straight Serie A titles. Inter’s struggles to stay competitive in the league have seen them pale in comparison to their rivals from Turin -- but this season has been a different story. Instead, Inter were in second place in Serie A coming into the weekend and enjoyed a spell atop the table, while Juventus have struggled badly coming out of the gate, managing just two wins in their first seven matches.
If there’s ever a time for Inter to reverse their fortunes and truly declare to Italy and the rest of Europe that they’re for real this season, this is it. A thrashing of Juventus in front of their home crowd at the San Siro would be a huge statement of their legitimacy as a contending team, and Inter should be looking to do all they can to get that all-important victory.
At the same time, though, a win for Juventus could really help turn around their season, giving them much-needed belief and momentum heading into what looks like will be a very rough stretch in their schedule. Either way, the winner of this match could wind up looking back with the Scudetto trophy in their hands come the end of the season and look at this match as their turning point of the campaign.
Juventus have won 101 of the 225 all-competitions meetings in the Derby d’Italia, and have won 86 of 191 meetings in the league. Inter fans aren’t particularly fond of that gulf, and will be eager to see their team start to close the gap if they can.
Key Inter player -- Ivan Perisic
While Mauro Icardi is the defending capocannoniere of Serie A, Perisic has been the man lighting up the stat books over the last month or so for Inter, with a long string of excellent performances and goals in each of his last three matches for club and country. His form has been red-hot, and especially since he'll be matched up against a reserve right-back with both Stephan Lichtsteiner and Martin Caceres sidelined, Perisic has an excellent chance to run that streak up to four straight matches with a goal.
Key Juventus player -- Paul Pogba
Pogba is Juventus’ best and most lethal player, but his form has tended to go on walkabout this season. Fortunately, though, this is a big match for Juve, and those have been the ones he’s tended to actually show up in. When he plays well, Juventus are a much tougher team to beat, and he’ll be an especially vital element against Inter’s tough and physical midfield.
Inter Milan injuries and suspensions
Out: Nemanja Vidic In doubt: Felipe Melo, Adem Ljajic, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Davide Santon, Stevan Jovetic, Dodo
Juventus injuries and suspensions
Out: Martin Caceres, Stephan Lichtsteiner In doubt: Alvaro Morata, Mario Mandukic, Claudio Marchisio, Roberto Pereyra, Stefano Sturaro
Inter have a lot of scrapes and bruises in their side, but the only guaranteed player to be absent is Vidic, who almost certainly wouldn’t have started in this match anyways even if he was in perfect health. Juve are, for the most part, in similar shape, though the fact that they only have one fully-healthy attacker will be a point of concern. They’re getting a big boost, though, as there’s a good chance Marchisio will return from injury and be a vital presence in midfield again.
Match Date/Time: Sunday, 2:45 p.m. ET, 8:45 p.m. local
Venue: San Siro, Milan, Italy
TV: beIN Sports (U.S. & Canada), Sky Calcio 1, Sky Sport 1 HD Italia (Italy), BT Sport Europe (U.K.), RAI International
Online: Fubo TV, beIN Sports Connect (U.S. & Canada), Sky Go Italia (Italy)
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