2026-2027 Serie A: Inter vs. Napoli, Probable Lineups

Inter and Napoli face off at 6 p.m. in the second early match on Saturday of the third matchday of the Serie A season. The reigning Italian champions head into this big match at San Siro with a perfect record following victories over Monza and Cagliari, while Allegri’s team is coming off a home loss to Como and remains stuck on three points in the standings.

Up front, Chivu is relying on the duo of Lautaro Martinez and Pio Esposito, as Marcus Thuram is not yet 100%. In midfield, the trio of Barella, Calhanoglu, and Zielinski is confirmed, while Sucic and Jones will start on the bench. In defense, Pavard and Stones could both start from the first minute alongside Bastoni.

Allegri fields the front three of Politano, Hojlund, and Alisson, while in midfield he might give Vergara a chance to play alongside Lobotka and Anguissa. The fullbacks will be Di Lorenzo and Spinazzola (preferred over Olivera).

Inter vs. Napoli: Probable Lineups
INTER (3-5-2): Martinez; Pavard, Stones, Bastoni; Diouf, Barella, Calhanoglu, Zielinski, Dimarco; Lautaro, Esposito. Coach: Chivu
NAPOLI (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Marin, Spinazzola; Anguissa, Lobotka, Vergara; Politano, Hojlund, Alisson. Coach: Allegri

Inter coach Chivu spoke about the difficulties his team faced in head-to-head matchups last season: “What does ‘head-to-head matchup’ mean? Does it mean facing the traditionally big teams in general, or just the teams that finish in the top four? So where do we leave Milan and Juve, since they finished so far back last year? Aren’t those head-to-head matches anymore? Are Napoli and Como, on the other hand, head-to-head matches? Actually, for me, they’re all head-to-head matches, even against the bottom teams…”.