Sunday’s Serie A action caps off at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza as title contenders Inter take on perennial strugglers Udinese. Buoyed by a superb start under new boss Cristian Chivu, last season’s runners-up head into proceedings in high spirits.

Last season was heartbreaking for Inter. Despite being in contention for a historic treble in mid-April, they finished the campaign without a trophy. Simone Inzaghi added insult to injury when he announced his decision to join Al-Hilal days after Inter’s embarrassing defeat in the Champions League final.

However, a new dawn arises at Meazza. Chivu exceeded expectations on his touchline debut in Serie A as Inter trounced Torino 5-0 on day one. Marcus Thuram scored a brace on his way to winning a flattering ‘Man of the Match’ award. It’s also worth noting that captain Lautaro Martinez and summer arrival Ange-Yoan Bonny got on the scoresheet.

Udinese’s opening-day clash against Hellas Verona wasn’t as flashy as Inter’s dominant win, yet it didn’t lack drama. Udinese squandered a second-half lead in an evenly-contested 1-1 draw, which saw both teams hit the woodwork after the halftime interval.

It wasn’t the start head coach Kosta Runjaic was hoping for following a 2-0 win over second-tier Carrarese in the first Coppa Italia round. Still, Udinese have yet to lose this season despite losing star striker Lorenzo Lucca to Napoli. Yet, this clash may come too soon for Lucca’s replacement, Adam Buksa, who has joined the club from Midtjylland.

Match Preview

Inter

Inter’s rout of Udinese made Chivu the first foreign head coach to oversee a round-one win since 2003, when Hector Cuper was in charge. However, the Romanian will hope to last longer than the legendary Argentine boss, who was relieved of his duties in October.

On another impressive note, Inter scored 5+ goals on the opening Serie A weekend for the first time since 1965, perhaps laying the groundwork for a title-challenging campaign. The Nerazzurri will unlikely rest on their laurels as they aim to win their first two home games of a new season for a fifth consecutive campaign.

Udinese’s visit bodes well, considering Inter have claimed victory in their last six competitive encounters with the Friulian side, including a narrow 2-1 win in this fixture last season. Those six consecutive wins add to Inter’s impressive all-time record against Udinese (W63, D32, L24), cementing their status as clear pre-match favorites.

Udinese

With the odds firmly stacked against them here, Udinese must pull off an epic upset to leave Meazza unbeaten for the first time since beating Inter 3-1 in December 2017. However, they have since lost all eight away matches against the 20-time Italian champions, conceding at least two goals in each of the last six.

Prone to slow away starts, Udinese have managed to win their first road league game in just one of the past nine seasons. As if that’s not ominous enough, Runjaic’s men have picked up just two wins on ten Serie A travels in 2025 (D3, L5), adding further cause for concern ahead of their trip to Lombardy.

Udinese must stop leaking goals in the first half to increase their chances of claiming more points on the road. For context, only Verona conceded more first-half goals on their travels in Serie A than Udinese’s 12 in 2024/25. As such, Runjaic knows where his side must improve if they’re to avoid another heavy defeat.

Team News

Except for the exit-bound Mehdi Taremi, Inter boss Chivu will have the remainder of his squad fit for this fixture. Moreover, Hakan Calhanoglu and Francesco Pio Esposito return from suspensions, with the former likely to dislodge Petar Sucic from his spot in the starting XI.

As for Udinese, first-choice goalkeeper Maduka Okoye is serving a two-month ban for illegal betting, paving the way for Razvan Sava to step between the posts. With Buksa likely to start on the bench, Keinan Davis will again lead the line alongside Iker Bravo.

Inter vs Udinese Potential Starting Line-ups

Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez.

Udinese (3-5-2): Sava; Bertola, Kristensen, Solet; Ehizibue, Atta, Karlstrom, Lovric, Zemura; Bravo, Davis.

Inter vs Udinese Prediction

Maximum points from the opening two rounds seems like a distinct possibility for Inter. Though backing them to repeat the rip-roaring performance from day one might be ambitious, Chivu’s charges remain odds-on to extend their winning home streak against Udinese.

Prediction: Inter to Win