Read our preview of this weekend’s Derby della Madonnina!
AC Milan vs Inter Preview
It’s time for the first Derby della Madonnina of 2025, and tensions are high ahead of this week’s big match in Italy. Inter are currently 2nd in the standings, while this weekend’s host are in 7th position. Let’s take a closer look at this weekend’s Milano derby!
The Serie A has been rather unexpected so far this season. At the start of the 2024/25 campaign, many expected the Scudetto title to end up in Milan – whether it be with AC or Inter. However, fast forward to the start of February and AC Milan are nowhere to be seen in the title race. Napoli, Inter, Atalanta, Lazio, Juventus, and Fiorentina make up the current top six in Italy, with AC Milan almost 20 points off the lead down in seventh. Inter, on the other hand, are flying near the summit of the table. Their four wins in the past five matches can only be bettered by table-topping Napoli, who remain three points clear of their title rivals, though they have played one game more than the Nerazzurri. Whatever happens over the next few months, it looks as though the Serie A title could go down to the wire this season! One thing is for certain, the final Derby della Madonnina of the season could be a huge turning point. Let’s take a look at the team news, predicted line-ups, and latest odds for AC Milan vs Inter at the San Siro this weekend.
The Venue
San Siro – Sunday 2 February. Kick-off: 18:00 local time.
Inter and AC Milan fans both visit the San Siro home and away throughout the Serie A season, such is their unique stadium-sharing situation. This time, Inter fans will have to file into the away section as they take on their bitter rivals at such an important part of the 2024/25 campaign.
The San Siro was first built back in 1926 – originally funded by AC Milan chairman, Piero Pirelli. However, AC Milan didn’t have the iconic stadium to themselves for long. Just nine years later, the San Siro was sold to the city and in 1947 a second football club moved in – Internazionale. Of course, this went down about as well as you would expect among the AC Milan supporters. The San Siro holds approximately 76,000 seats and is officially called the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza – named after an Italian legend who represented both teams.
AC Milan and Inter Form Guide
The form of the two Milan clubs is rather polarising at the moment. Inter are unbeaten in their last 17 Serie A matches. AC Milan, on the other hand, only have two wins in their last four games. Inter are second in the Italian top flight with 50 points from just 21 matches – including 15 wins, five draws, and just the one defeat all season. Of course, that one defeat came all the way back in September when AC Milan beat them 2-1 at the San Siro. Milan themselves have failed to win even half of their Serie A matches this season though, racking up seven draws and five defeats compared to their nine wins. That leaves them 19 points off Napoli at the top of the table and 16 points behind their rivals Inter. It would certainly have to be a huge second half of the season to get them back into any kind of contention – many would claim it is not even possible. AC Milan will likely instead focus on breaking back into the CL qualification places for 2025/26, pitting them against the likes of Fiorentina, Juventus, and Lazio.
Team News and Injury News
Internazionale have a relatively clean bill of health heading into the Derby della Madonnina on Sunday, with just a few doubtful names. Raffaele Di Gennaro will be out until late February with a finger injury. Both Joaquin Correa and Hakan Calhanoglu are expected to return in time for Inter’s CL match in midweek, meaning they are highly likely to recover from their respective calf problems to play some part against AC Milan. Francesco Acerbi went for a scan on his thigh this week and it remains to be seen how long that injury keeps him on the sidelines.
AC Milan are also looking relatively healthy this week, although they have a few more long-term absentees than their city rivals. Alessandro Florenzi remains out with a cruciate ligament injury that he picked up back in July 2024 – he is not expected to return until the end of April 2025. Emerson Royal was linked with a move away in the January transfer window before picking up a calf injury that will sideline him until the end of March. Ruben Loftus-Cheek is out with a muscle problem and his return date is not yet known. Finally, Malick Thiaw has a hamstring injury but could make his return this week.
Players to Watch
If there is one consistent thing about the Derby della Madonnina it is this – there is always a rich array of exciting players to watch. Picking out a dangerman from either team, it’s hard to look any further than Rafael Leao and Lautaro Martinez. With Inter playing a three-at-the-back system, it will be interesting to see whether Leao can take up some dangerous pockets between Dimarco and Bastoni. Martinez, on the other hand, has the unique blessing of a strike partnership, something Gabbia and Pavlovic are going to have to be at their very best to nullify. These huge derby fixtures are so often won and lost in the engine room, meaning it could be a titanic battle between the likes of Reijnders, Fofana, Bennacer and Barella, Calhanoglu, and Mkhitaryan. While AC Milan might have a little more size and strength in there, Inter bring more creativity and quality on the ball. That could make for a very interesting match-up!
AC Milan vs Inter Head-to-head Record
Believe it or not, there have been a few Derby della Madonninas over the years. It is certainly a short commute from Inter’s home of the San Siro to AC Milan’s stadium – the San Siro. The first Derby della Madonnina was played all the way back in 1926 and there have been over 220 iterations since then. So far, Inter boast 85 wins to Milan’s 73 (as well as another 67 draws).
Although Inter have been one of the most dominant forces in the Serie A so far this season, they have already lost twice to AC Milan. One of these defeats came in the league back in September – their only defeat of the Serie A season so far – and the second came in the Supercoppa Italiana final, which the Rossoneri won 3-2.
However, for the most part, AC Milan have struggled against Inter in recent years. In the last nine fixtures across all competitions between these two, Inter have come out on top six times compared to AC Milan’s three. Last season in the Serie A, Milan suffered a 2-1 defeat at home to their bitter rivals, which led to them being crowned their 20th league title. That being said, home and away form kind of goes out the window when you play at exactly the same stadium week-in week-out.
Potential Implications
There are certain to be huge implications of AC Milan vs Inter this weekend – although the two rivals will be fighting for different goals. Of course, the Derby della Madonnina always comes with local bragging rights above all else, and the fans will be hoping to see their team reign victorious in what could be the final derby of the 2024/25 season. However, Inter will have a stronger eye on the Serie A title fight. With Napoli just three points ahead (and with a tricky away fixture against Roma this weekend), Internazionale know that every single point counts at this stage of the season. A win could feasibly take them joint top of the table. AC Milan, on the other hand, are within touching distance of the CL qualification places. Lazio, Juventus, and Fiorentina are just five, three, and two points ahead of Milan in the table respectively. A win could potentially help them to leapfrog Fiorentina up into a European qualification spot, at the very least.
Predicted Line-Ups
Let’s take a look at how we expect Inter and AC Milan to line up for the Derby della Madonnina this weekend.
AC Milan Starting XI
Maignan; Calabria, Gabbia, Pavlovic, Hernandez; Reijnders, Fofana, Bennacer; Pulisic, Abraham, Leao.
Internazionale Starting XI
Sommer; Pavard, de Vrij, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez.
Internazionale vs AC Milan Odds
AC Milan head into the Derby della Madonnina with the home advantage this weekend. They can also rest easy in the knowledge that they have beaten Inter twice already this season – and no other team can say that. Let’s take a look at the latest odds for AC Milan vs Inter at the San Siro on Sunday.
AC Milan to win: 3.70
Draw: 3.70
Internazionale to win: 1.95
Last season, Inter won this fixture 2-1. You can get odds of them doing the same again for7.50. Internazionale are 10.00 to win 2-0 or 8.00 to win 1-0. If you want to back AC Milan to record their third win of the season against Inter, you can get odds of 12.00 for a 1-0 victory and 11.00 for 2-1.
You can check the full range of Inter vs AC Milan odds at Betsson HERE.
AC Milan vs Internazionale Prediction
This is an extremely difficult one to predict. Even though there is a gulf between them in the table, AC Milan have already masterminded two victories against Inter this season. It could be a simple case of this Milan team matching up really well against this Inter team, or the tide could change on Sunday. In the spirit of that immovable object vs an unstoppable force, we are predicting an exciting 2-2 draw at the San Siro.
Prediction: AC Milan 2-2 Internazionale
PS: The odds might have changed since the writing and publication of this article.
Last Updated: 31.01.2025
