By Tommy Lund
(Reuters) – Atalanta host Inter Milan in the last Serie A round before the World Cup break on Sunday, with both teams desperate for three points to stay on the trail of leaders Napoli.
While Atalanta suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Lecce on Wednesday, Inter bulldozed Bologna 6-1 and both sides are level on 27 points, in fifth and fourth place, respectively.
Napoli, however, are streaking clear with 38 points and Inter coach Simone Inzaghi is taking it one game at a time.
“We’ve won five of the last six matches, we are all really up there apart from Napoli who are breaking away,” he said.
“(But) there’s no point looking at the table now. We also have to put the Champions League aside, because it’s all about the present.”
Napoli will host eighth-placed Udinese on Saturday in a game that a few weeks ago would have been a top-of-the-table clash.
However, Andrea Sottil’s Udinese side have not won a match since early October and, after their 1-1 draw at Spezia on Tuesday, have gone seven games without a victory in all competitions.
Napoli, however, have already guaranteed that they will head into the World Cup break at the top of the standings, extending their Serie A winning streak to 10 games on Tuesday when they beat visitors Empoli 2-0.
“We know very well what prospects we have and what our dreams are, and these three points help us move forward,” Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti said.
“But there are seven other contenders for the title and nothing has changed.”
Juventus will host Lazio in another huge clash on Sunday, when AC Milan will take on Fiorentina as the club tries to stop Napoli extending their lead.
“It’s a lot, we certainly don’t like this situation, but we have an opportunity to win on Sunday and then there’s a long campaign ahead of us. Naturally, we didn’t want to be this far off at this stage,” Milan coach Stefano Pioli said.
(Editing by Toby Davis)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content.