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Pre-season Friendlies
Jul 25, 2015 at 1pm UK
 
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1-0

Mexes (62')
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Preview: AC Milan vs. Inter Milan

Sports Mole looks ahead to a pre-season edition of the Milan derby between AC and Inter in the International Champions Cup.

City rivals AC Milan and Inter Milan meet in the inaugural Chinese version of the International Champions Cup tomorrow.

It is just a pre-season friendly, but the Rossoneri and Nerazzurri will want to put on a show in Shenzhen.


AC

Serbia head coach Sinisa Mihajlovic during an international friendly match against Colombia on August 14, 2013© Getty Images

After last year's 10th-place finish in Serie A, Filippo Inzaghi lost his job in charge of the team and has since been replaced by former Inter player Sinisa Mihajlovic.

Mihajlovic left Sampdoria, who finished above both Milan teams in seventh last term, for the Rossoneri job and their summer signings so far have largely impressed.

The attack has been bolstered with strikers Carlos Bacca and Luiz Adriano after Jeremy Menez (16) was the only player to score more than seven goals last term.

Milan started their pre-season with a pair of 5-1 victories over lower-league Italian outfits Alcione and Legnano before going down 2-1 to Lyon on Saturday.

AC were the last team to win Serie A before Juventus's recent dominance in 2011 and have been locked on the same number of national titles (18) as Inter.

Recent form: LWWWWL


Inter

Inter Milan's coach Roberto Mancini gestures during the Serie A football match between AC Milan and Inter at San Siro Stadium in Milan on November 23, 2014© Getty Images

While Mihajlovic impressed the Sampdoria fans as a manager recently, Inter boss Roberto Mancini made his name as a player for La Samp.

He began his second spell in charge of Inter last year, but couldn't propel the Nerazzurri to the top five as they finished eighth and eight points behind the European places.

The summer additions of Miranda from Atletico Madrid and Geoffrey Kondogbia from Monaco have gone down well. In the build-up to this game, Mancini has lauded the business of both Milan clubs and believes that they can challenge for the Serie A title this term.

Juventus have been the dominant force of late, winning the league four seasons in a row - a feat also achieved by Inter between 2007 and 2010.

Mancini's men, like AC, had two victories to start pre-season before suffering defeat against one of Europe's top teams as they went down 1-0 to Bayern Munich on Tuesday.

AC and Inter have both been ever-presents in the ICC since its inception two years ago.

Recent form: LLWWWL


Team News

Carlos Bacca celebrates scoring for Sevilla on February 22, 2015© AFP

Bacca gave up the chance to play in the Champions League with Sevilla after firing the Spanish side to Europa League glory last term to join Milan, and he could play his first game in red and black tomorrow.

Elsewhere, fellow new face Andrea Bertolacci could also be in the Rossoneri starting XI following his €20m (£14.2m) move from Genoa.

Kondogbia has already turned out in pre-season for Inter, but will be keen to make a big impression in his first Milan derby after opting for Inter over AC this summer.

Mateo Kovacic is also expected to start, despite the regular rumours linking him to a move away.

AC possible starting lineup:
Lopez, Abate, Alex, Paletta, Antonelli, De Jong, Montolivo, Bertolacci, Honda, Cerci, Bacca

Inter possible starting lineup:
Handanovic, D'Ambrosio, Ranocchia, Miranda, Montoya, Kondogbia, Hernanes, Medel, Kovacic, Palacio, Icardi


Head To Head

AC are unbeaten in three matches against their city rivals, but the two Serie A meetings in 2014-15 both ended in draws.

Their last encounter in April finished as a goalless stalemate, while the November reverse was a 1-1 draw in what was Mancini's first game in charge of Inter.

The last time the two teams met in a friendly was six years ago when Inter claimed a 2-0 win.


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We say: AC 2-1 Inter

These pre-season games are tough to call, but we're just siding with Milan, who might benefit from Bacca wanting to make an impact on his debut.



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Inter Milan's coach Roberto Mancini gestures during the Serie A football match between AC Milan and Inter at San Siro Stadium in Milan on November 23, 2014
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