First the away trip to Venice and then the derby against Milan. Inter are preparing to experience five intense days, with particular attention inevitably focused on the city derby, which will carry special importance given the results in recent matches.
And so, Cristian Chivu will have to consider rotations, squad rotation, choices and all of this while keeping a close eye on the injury situation. This is because several players are still sidelined, including captain Lautaro Martinez.
Lautaro Martinez will not recover in time for the Milan derby
The derby will take place on Saturday 31 October at 20:45 at San Siro, which will be predominantly red and black, given that Milan will be playing at home. However, one of the major absentees from the match will be Lautaro Martinez, writes Calcio Mercato. The Inter captain and leader will not recover from the muscle injury to his thigh sustained following the defeat against Bruges, which has already forced him to miss four matches.
The situation is different for Curtis Jones, John Stones and Benjamin Pavard. All three are close to returning to Chivu's squad, but they will certainly not be available against Venezia.
However, none of them has trained with the group, and they should be considered as being "under observation" ahead of the derby.
Inter to rotate against Venezia ahead of the derby
The derby must not be underestimated, but neither should Venezia. And so, there will be room for some rotation, although not excessive. In defence, Akanji should be given a rest, with Carlos Augusto remaining in the right centre-back role and Bastoni returning to the centre. In midfield, Calhanoglu could also be given another rest to ensure he is at 100% for the derby, while Aleksandar Stankovic could be given an opportunity.
Finally, the surprise move could come in attack, with Markus Thuram potentially starting on the bench and playing no more than 30 minutes, while the Pio-Bonny partnership could start from the first minute.
