AC Milan vs Inter Milan
Serie A title hopefuls, Inter Milan and AC Milan meet at the 60,000 capacity Optus Stadium in Perth on Wednesday to joust in a fascinating pre-season club friendly in front of the sport-loving Aussie crowd.
New Milan manager Ruben Amorim will hope for his side to put up a good performance against the reigning Italian champions, while Inter boss Cristian Chivu wants to see his champions playing as they did to win the Scudetto.
Talking Points
Amorim’s squad is well equipped to challenge
After a fifth placed finish last term, I Rossoneri are missing out on Champions League football again, but they have a squad which is well stocked for the new manager, and he has already made two crucial additions. Captained by keeper Mike Maignan and with Fikayo Tomori in the heart of defence, alongside new signing Mario Gila who arrived in a 30m Euros deal from Lazio, this is a team which will be hard to penetrate and can build attacks from defence. Christian Pulisic is the creative heartbeat of the team in the final third where Milan’s biggest re-enforcement has arrived.
Portugal star Goncalo Ramos cost a cool 74m Euros to attract from Paris Saint-Germain and he brings with him a big reputation. The 25-year-old scored 25 goals in 70 games for the Parisiens and he has 11 in 27 for Portugal, and he is much more than an out and out striker. Ramos can play as a centre forward or in the slot just behind the main striker and he willingly drops deep to help turn over possession or pick up the ball. His energetic running makes space for others and that will benefit both Pulisic and Rafael Leao who are both capable of carving a defence wide open.
Amorim wants to bring more attacking players in, and the club is considering a move to bring Moroccan forward Brahim Diaz back from Real Madrid to the San Siro Stadium where he enjoyed a successful three-year spell between 2020 and 2023 before moving to the La Liga giants. And he may raise some funds and make space in the first team squad by offloading some of a bloated midfield group. Luka Modric and Adrien Rabiot will be the main picks with Ardon Jashari, Yunis Musah and Samuele Riccio in the frame, which may mean that Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Youssouf Fofana may be looking for a new challenge.
There is plenty of dealing to be done in Milan as the new season draws near and Amorim can use this tour of Australia as a way of working out who he wants to stay.
A good test for Inter’s title credentials
The Serie A 2026 betting odds here at SBOTOP say I Nerazzurri are the team to beat, with Milan, Napoli and Juventus the biggest dangers so, while this is a friendly, manager Cristian Chivu knows full well his team will be tested in Perth and that the Inter fans will expect a strong performance against their city rivals. Inter captain Lautaro Martinez had a good World Cup, scoring Argentina’s winner in the semi-final against England and he will be a force to be reckoned with again this year while Turkish star Hakan Calhanoglu will be a key player if he stays in Milan, amidst rumours surrounding a potential move to the Turkish league with Fenerbahce. Azzurri star Nicola Barrella will be an influential figure again with his experience of winning three Scudettos in his six years at the club.
In terms of transfer activity, defensive midfielder Alexander Stankovic has arrived in a 23m Euros move from Club Brugge; while defender John Stones has arrived following the end of his Manchester City career, and he’ll be re-united with former colleague Manuel Akanji who spent last season on loan with Inter and has now signed a permanent deal. Wingback Denzil Dumfries has gone to Real Madrid in a 20m Euros deal move and so I expect more movement in the market at Inter too.
History
AC Milan have won their last three meetings with Inter, latterly a 1-0 win at the San Siro Stadium as Pervis Estupinan scored the only goal of the game. So, while Serie A 2026 results are pretty much all that matters in a few weeks’ time this match holds plenty of value, not least with pre-season bragging rights for the fans.
Betting Tip
With Inter at 2.10 and Milan at 2.75 this exhibition match could go any which way and, while Inter Milan have the winning mentality of the past campaign, the Milan squad is shaping up and the Rossoneri has the psychological upper hand.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT)
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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