Serie A official Week 21 line-ups: Udinese vs. Inter

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·17 January 2026

Serie A official Week 21 line-ups: Udinese vs. Inter

Inter aim to consolidate top spot and take revenge over Udinese for earlier this season, as Francesco Pio Esposito, Lautaro Martinez and Piotr Zielinski start.

It kicks off at the Bluenergy Stadium at 14.00 GMT (15.00 CET).

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You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from this game, Napoli-Sassuolo and Cagliari-Juventus on the Liveblog.

MILAN, ITALY – JANUARY 11: Cristian Chivu, Head Coach of FC Internazionale Milano, looks on prior to the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and SSC Napoli at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on January 11, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The Nerazzurri won the midweek round with Lecce to secure their status as Winter Champions, and further break away at the top of the table, opening up a three-point lead over Milan and six from Napoli.

With a huge Champions League tie against Arsenal coming up, Cristian Chivu rotates the squad yet again with Pio Esposito partnering Lautaro Martinez this time.

Hakan Calhanoglu, Denzel Dumfries, Josep Martinez, Tomas Palacios and Raffaele Di Gennaro are still out of action.

Davide Frattesi was expected to start amid transfer speculation, but it’s Zielinski again instead.

BERGAMO, ITALY – DECEMBER 28: Piotr Zielinski of FC Internazionale in action during the Serie A match between Atalanta BC and FC Internazionale at New Balance Arena on December 28, 2025 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Udinese beat Inter 2-1 at San Siro in August, one of the only times the title contenders have dropped points against one of the so-called smaller opponents.

However, star man Nicolò Zaniolo is out following surgery, joining Jordan Zemura and Adam Buksa on the treatment table.

Arthur Atta has fully recovered from his injury to start in a more advanced role as support for striker Keinan Davis.

Oumar Solet is one to watch, having been linked with a potential move to Inter in recent months.

This is also a special day for Udinese, as it marks the 10th anniversary of the totally revamped Bluenergy Stadium, or the Stadio Friuli as it once was.

UDINE, ITALY – OCTOBER 25: Keinan Davis of Udinese celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the Serie A match between Udinese Calcio and US Lecce at Stadio Friuli on October 25, 2025 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Timothy Rogers/Getty Images)