Two players returning to the starting lineup and a new spirit, that of a top-ranked team, to defeat their nemesis, Bologna. This is how the Nerazzurri coach is preparing for Sunday’s match.

First the test, then the lesson. But now it’s time for a new roll call that will show whether Inter have studied… Italian. Sixteen days after Riyadh, at San Siro, Chivu and his teammates will face Bologna, and in just over two weeks’ time it could be a completely different game, especially as far as the outcome is concerned. In the Super Cup semifinal, the Nerazzurri student stumbled on the final questions, but in the league they will have only 90 minutes to string together their fifth consecutive Serie A victory—which would be a first this season—without any more mistakes. The eraser at the opposite end will not be able to erase the more or less recent slip-ups (in the last 10 previous matches, only two wins and several disappointments, from last year’s 2-1 defeat with an own goal by Radu to Orsolini’s overhead kick, and last season’s 2-2 draw, as well as the defeat in the round of 16 of the 2023 Coppa Italia). However, compared to the last test, Inter can return to the bench with a little more knowledge.

That little extra is primarily Lautaro Martinez. Left on the bench at the start in Riyadh and only coming on in the 71st minute, he will resume his place up front from the start on Sunday. With a goal, he would score for the fifth consecutive league game and also reach double figures for the seventh different season in Serie A, surpassing Vieri and Boninsegna (both with six seasons with at least ten goals), and only Giuseppe Meazza and Benito Lorenzi (nine) and Alessandro Altobelli (eight) would remain ahead of him in this special ranking. And if Toro will be Chivu’s first change for the second act of the season against Bologna, the second is another return. Calhanoglu, who was out of the Super Cup due to an adductor injury, will also return to midfield. Against Atalanta, he remained on the pitch for the entire 90 minutes, played 75 balls, made 52 successful passes, and created three chances. In short, the Turk is back. But in addition to the certainties on the pitch, there will be the lessons learned from the last few games against the Rossoblù beast. And in this case, the ‘move’ will not be tactical but mental, a matter of spirit. The motivation of being at the top of the table, of being top of the class with others hot on their heels, waiting for them to slip up. With the top three teams within three points of each other, the table could change again after the next 90 minutes. With two games to go before the halfway point, Inter cannot afford to let that happen.