Let's put our serious thinking caps on now, shall we? The challenge of the day finds us staring down an engaging contest between Udinese, the underdogs, and Inter, the bookie favorites.
Your evidence for the promising night is right there in the black and white. Between the goalposts for each team, we are looking at Yann Sommer for Inter with a rating of 7.17 and Maduka Okoye for Udinese, standing tall with a rating of 6.97. Sommer faired a little less in comparison with a fewer number of saves, but hey, who's counting? Okoye has indeed impressed with ten saves under his belt.
Inter's lineup can turn heads faster than a newly minted rookie player. Just listen to this — Federico Dimarco with his near impeccable accurate pass percentage of 88.8% and Alessandro Bastoni, the silent artist orchestrating with 91.7%. But the cherry on Inter's cake is their young rocket, Marcus Thuram. He's got 2 goals last month alone — clear indicators that he doesn't only dance in the rain, he makes it rain!
For Udinese, Florian Thauvin seems to be the heavyweight, holding his own with an impressive rating of 7.83 and a commendable pass accuracy of 77.1%. And then there's Hassane Kamara with a pass accuracy of 92.3% adding to the team's strength.
Looking at their past matches, it seems like Inter has a history of putting Udinese in their rearview mirror. And we all know, history has a knack for repeating itself. With regular season records showing Inter at 2-2-1 and Udinese at 3-1-1, the odds seem to be rolled in the favor of Udinese, but ladies and gentlemen, I feel the tables are about to turn.
Pressed with recent defeats, Inter can't be itching for another one. Hook or by crook, they're going to put up a heck of a fight. As for Udinese, their track record has been a bit of a mixed paint palette. Yes, they've had their high points but their recent loss to Roma will definitely put a damper on their spirits.
Weighing all the scales in balance, at this crossroads, I’m inclined towards a gritty and gutsier Inter punching in a victory for this face-off.
Albert’s Prediction: Inter by 2