Serie A Preview: Inter vs Torino – Team News, Line-ups & Prediction | OneFootball

Stadio Giuseppe Meazza sets the stage for an exciting Serie A opening-matchday clash between Inter and Torino. Indeed, the second of the two Monday fixtures pits last season’s runners-up against the perennial mid-table strugglers.

Inter came within touching distance of winning their first treble since Jose Mourinho’s era in 2010 last season. However, despite being in contention for three titles in mid-April, they ended up empty-handed in Simone Inzaghi’s final season in charge.

In addition to finishing second to Napoli in Serie A by a single point in one of the most intense Scudetto races in recent memory, Inter suffered a humiliating loss in the Champions League. Paris Saint-Germain trounced the Nerazzurri 5-0 in the Munich final.

Only a few days later, Inzaghi announced he would take over the reins at Hilal. With the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup around the corner, Inter had little time to find a suitable replacement. After Cesc Fabregas turned them down to stay at Como, they turned to a familiar face.

Cristian Chivu, who helped Parma secure top-flight survival in the 2024/25 campaign, has returned to San Siro in a different capacity. Though Inter faltered in the United States-held tournament, they’ll seek better luck against Torino.

Like Inter, the Granata underwent a managerial shift during the summer, with Marco Baroni replacing Paolo Vanoli at the helm. The former Lazio manager’s appointment is supposed to help Torino fight higher up the table after spending the past few years in mid-table mediocrity.

Match Preview

Inter

Despite failing to sign Ademola Lookman, it’s been a busy summer at Meazza. Inter have captured the services of Luis Henrique, Petar Sucic, Ange-Yoan Bonny, and Andy Diouf. Furthermore, they’ve kept all key first-team players, including Hakan Calhanoglu, who was a concrete target for Fenerbahce and Galatasaray.

Chivu can make history in his Serie A debut as Inter manager. A seventh consecutive victory over Torino would see him become the first foreign coach in charge of the Nerazzurri to win on matchday since 2003. With the home side unbeaten across their last 12 league matches against the Granata (W11, D1), it looks like a virtual certainty.

Delivering action from the get-go was Inter’s trademark toward the end of the previous Serie A campaign. They scored the opening goal in eight of their last ten league outings, highlighting the potential for a quick-fire start. Drawing first blood could be vital, considering five of Inter’s six most recent top-flight games have seen the winner keep a clean sheet.

Torino

Six consecutive seasons without European football prompted some changes at Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino. Vanoli’s exit wasn’t the only notable departure, as star goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic joined Napoli and talismanic midfielder Samuele Ricci transferred to Milan.

However, Baroni’s men have made several exciting signings, including the loan additions of Cyril Ngonge and Giovanni Simeone from Napoli as well as Zakaria Aboukhlal’s arrival from Toulouse. They should help Torino break a long-standing ‘San Siro jinx,’ having failed to win any of their last 18 visits to this venue (D5, L13).

Baroni got his tenure off to a winning start, beating Serie B outfit Modena 1-0 in the opening Coppa Italia round. Yet, this is an entirely different challenge for Torino, whose last five league defeats all came ‘to nil.’ Synonymous with low-scoring affairs, Torino’s 11 previous matches have featured under 2.5 goals.

Team News

Inter will be without prodigious center-forward Francesco Pio Esposito and Calhanoglu as both must serve yellow-card suspensions. Mehdi Taremi is out of the squad, waiting for a transfer, meaning Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez will likely lead the line in this day-one showdown.

As for Torino, Duvan Zapata’s return from a lengthy spell on the sidelines can encourage Baroni, yet the visitors cannot call upon two reliable center-backs. Perr Schuurs and Ardijan Ismajli are on the sidelines. The same goes for lightning-fast forward Alieu Njie.

Inter vs Torino Potential Starting Line-ups

Inter (3-4-2-1): Sommer; Bastoni, De Vrij, Pavard; Dimraco, Barella, Sucic, Dumfries; Henrique, Thuram; L. Martinez.

Torino (4-2-3-1): Israel; Pedersen, Coco, Maripan, Biraghi; Anjorin, Casadei; Ngonge, Vlasic, Aboukhlal; Adams.

Inter vs Torino Prediction

Despite Chivu’s lack of experience, history and quality are firmly on Inter’s side. A winning start would significantly boost the Romanian manager’s confidence ahead of a more challenging patch. Torino’s long-standing struggles at San Siro are too telling to be overlooked, and it’s questionable whether they could even get on the scoresheet.