Napoli striker Manolo Gabbiadini. (Photo : Getty Images)
Two powerhouse clubs Inter Milan (17-8-7, 58 points) and SSC Napoli (21-4-7, 70 points) are scheduled to square off in a crucial match on Saturday, April 16th at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in San Siro as the 2015-2016 Serie A season enters its final six matchdays.
Both teams will be looking to win this encounter as Inter wants to overtake Roma for the third and final Champions League qualification berth at third place in the league table while Napoli aims to win its first ever Scudetto by trying to dislodge league leaders and defending champions Juventus from their lofty porch.
Internazionale is coming off a tough 1-0 victory over a 10-man Frosinone Calcio squad at the Stadio Matusa last Saturday, as per ESPN.
Team captain and resident striker Mauro Icardi scored the lone goal of the contest for head coach Roberto Mancini's team at the 74th minute as the two competitors were unable to score in the whole first half and much of the second half as well.
It was a much-improved performance for I Nerazzurri after going winless in their previous two matches, a 1-1 draw with Roma and a sorry 1-2 loss to Torino.
Meanwhile, Napoli looked good in its first game without superstar striker Gonzalo Higuaín, crushing cellar-dwelling squad Hellas Verona, 3-0, at the San Paolo Stadium last Sunday, as reported by SB Nation.
Higuaín, this season's top goalscorer with 30 goals in 31 appearances, was banned for four fixtures after his enraged reaction to the referee and several opposing players during the Partenopei's stunning 1-3 upset loss to Udinese in the previous matchday.
Taking his place in head coach Maurizio Sarri's starting eleven is Manolo Gabbiadini, who scored the opening goal against Verona at the 33rd minute, indicating that he is up to the task of stepping up to fill the gap left by Higuaín.
Higuaín's resident striking partner Lorenzo Insigne scored the second goal of the match right at the stroke of halftime with a penalty kick while another forward, Jose Callejon, netted the team's final goal to complete their three-goal haul for the afternoon.
The predicted result is a close 2-1 decision for Napoli as the team survives another day without Higuaín.
Inter Milan starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Handanovic; D'Ambrosio, Murillo, Juan Jesus, Alex; Biabiany, Brozovic, Melo, Perisic; Jovetic, Icardi
Napoli starting lineup (4-3-3 formation): Reina; Soderlund, Albiol, Chiriches, Ghoulam; Lopez, Jorginho, Hamsik; Callejon, Gabbiadini, Insigne
