Juventus will head to rivals Inter Milan on Saturday evening in high spirits after reaching the Champions League final for the first time in 12 years this week.
Juve, who wrapped up a fourth consecutive Serie A title earlier this month, reached the decider of Europe's elite club competition after coming from behind to draw 1-1 at Real Madrid on Wednesday. That saw them record a 3-2 aggregate victory and keep hopes of a historic treble alive, with the Coppa Italia final to come next weekend.
Inter Milan
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It has been a largely frustrating campaign for Inter this term, although it could end on a high note if Roberto Mancini's side continue their recent upturn in form in Serie A.
The Nerazzurri had looked set for mid-table mediocrity, but a run of seven games without defeat has moved them to within three points of Fiorentina in fifth and a Europa League spot.
Inter began a run of their next four matches coming against top-half teams by beating Lazio 2-1 last weekend, but Juventus could be a different proposition.
Some supporters were questioning the decision to bring Roberto Mancini back to San Siro for a second spell as manager back in November, but Inter's recent form suggests that the former Manchester City boss is beginning to make his mark.
Mancini has stated that he is hoping to challenge for the Scudetto next season and if they can pick up positive results in their final three games of the campaign, especially against Juve, it will provide a huge boost ahead of the next campaign.
Recent form: WDWWDW
Juventus
© Getty Images
It has been a memorable week for Juventus supporters, with the club enjoying success in Europe and keeping their hopes of landing a historic treble alive.
Juve overcame Real Madrid 3-2 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday evening to set up a clash against Barcelona in the final.
Alvaro Morata scored the decisive goal to secure a 1-1 draw at Santiago Bernabeu and send the Italian champions through to their first final since 2003.
With the title wrapped up, Allegri will turn his attention to the Coppa Italia final against Lazio on Wednesday along with their Champions League showdown with Barcelona, so he could look to give fringe players the opportunity to impress during the final league games of the season.
Recent form: WWWDWD
Recent form (all competitions): LWWWDD
Team News
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Inter will be without midfielder Fredy Guarin, who has been ruled out for the rest of the season after succumbing to a hamstring injury. Mancini might be tempted to shuffle his midfield around as a result, with Yuto Nagatomo in line to start.
Lukas Podolski and Xherdan Shaqiri both had to settle for a place on the bench against Lazio for the second week in a row, so they will be hoping to earn a recall to the starting XI.
Following their heroics against Real in midweek, Allegri will more than likely rest a few of his key players. This could mean that Roberto Pereyra, Alessandro Matri and Fernando Llorente are given starts.
Paul Pogba, who had been out since March 18 with a thigh problem, started against Real in midweek. The Frenchman played 89 minutes in Spain and thus may be named among the substitutes for this one.
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Handanovic; D'Ambrosio, Vidic, Ranocchia, Juan; Medel, Kovacic, Shaqiri, Nagatomo; Icardi, Palacio
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Buffon; Padoin, Bonucci, Chiellini; De Ceglie, Vidal, Marchisio, Sturaro, Pereyra; Matri, Llorente
Head To Head
Juve have enjoyed the better record when the sides have met in recent seasons. Inter last beat them in November 2012, when Diego Milito's double helped them to a 3-1 success away from home.
The champions have won two of the four matches since. They earned a 1-1 draw on their last visit to San Siro and were held by the same scoreline in the reverse fixture earlier this campaign at the Juventus Stadium.
We say: Inter Milan 1-1 Juventus
Inter Milan still have something to play for, domestically at least, and they need three points to maintain their hopes of qualifying for the Europa League next season.
Juventus's focus is now on the two cup competitions that they remain in, so Allegri will not be too concerned if his side fail to win here. Given Inter's fine form of late, they should be at least capable enough of taking a point off the champions.
Steven Toplis
