Previewing Serie A's Milan derby

Italian football returned this past weekend, much to the delight of fans of clubs across the peninsula. But for two of the teams coming back from their shortened winter break, those fixtures were merely a warm-up for the main event Sunday evening -- when AC Milan plays Inter in the 205th edition of the Derby della Madonnina.

Named after a statue of the Virgin Mary sitting atop the Milan Cathedral, it is undoubtedly one of the world's most glamorous fixtures and set in one of the game's grandest stadia in the fashion capital of a country known for its chic and style. The match has written the narrative to many of Italian football's greatest stories, from the original split of the clubs in a row over foreign players to becoming the embodiment of the Sandro Mazzola-Gianni Rivera "staffeta" debate in the early 1980s.

It has seen Milan's Dutch trio of Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard and Ruud Gullit pitted against Inter's Germans, Andreas Brehme, Jürgen Klinsmann and Lothar Matthäus. A Champions League tie was abandoned after fans were so unhappy with a refereeing decision they not only forced the game to stop -- after a shower of flares rained down onto the pitch -- but also saw UEFA hand down its largest-ever fine. With the political affiliation of Silvio Berlusconi sitting in stark contrast to the romantic heritage of Massimo Moratti, this tie truly has seen it all, and the forthcoming encounter promises to be every inch as important as any previous meeting.

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Dino Panato/Getty ImagesAC Milan's Thiago Silva will look to slow down Giampaolo Pazzini and Inter when the neighboring rivals meet at the San Siro on Sunday.

For Inter, it will be a huge test of the resurgence seen under new boss Claudio Ranieri over the past month. After losing to both CSKA Moscow and Udinese at the start of December, Inter closed the year on a four-match winning streak, during which it conceded only a single goal. Add to that the emphatic 5-0 win over Parma this past weekend, and it becomes clear that the former Roma coach has brought some much-needed stability to the Nerazzurri, who found themselves near the relegation places just a year after completing their historic treble.

With Inter now up to fifth place and beginning to close the gap on the leaders, the Champions League place that the club's fans, prestige and indeed financial position all demand is slowly coming into view. It is almost a repeat of the revival seen at Roma when Ranieri arrived two games into the 2009-10 season with his hometown club dead last in Serie A, only to inspire the Giallorossi to a remarkable second-place finish. A positive result against the biggest of rivals could spur Inter on to achieving that goal, while a loss -- after working so hard to put itself in this position -- could well undermine what must at present be a fragile confidence.

Across the city divide, champion AC Milan sits top of the table and has been praised for some superb results, not least the Champions League draw against Barcelona, but the Rossoneri also failed to begin the new campaign at their best. Indeed, they won just one of their first five league games, a spell which included losses to Napoli and Juventus. Since then, however, they have won all but two of the following 12 matches -- both of which ended in draws -- giving them 32 of a possible 36 points in that period.

The game will pit Serie A's best attack -- Milan has scored 37 goals in 17 league games to date -- against a defense which, over the last six games, is the most in-form in the division. Former Inter striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will look for another big performance as he faces his former club, against whom he has two goals in three matches since joining the Rossoneri in August of 2010. The Sweden captain will be key to his side's chances; in the absence of Antonio Cassano, Milan has come to rely on him as much for his ability to create chances for others as for his own remarkable scoring rate.

Recently voted last season's worst player, Diego Milito has found form for Inter over the last few games, while Giampaolo Pazzini has become the team's most dangerous forward over the 12 months since his arrival. The possible return from injury of both Diego Forlan and Wesley Sneijder, however, gives Ranieri an enviable selection problem in attack. But whoever is chosen will be in for a tough evening, as Milan's Thiago Silva has continued the impressive form on display all last term into the new season. He is comfortably the best defender in Serie A -- especially when Alessandro Nesta is alongside him -- and it is evident why Barcelona has maintained interest in the Brazilian over the past few months.

Looking beyond the obvious names, which should now perhaps include Antonio Nocerino after his incredible run of goals since joining Milan from Palermo, perhaps the key player in the game may well be whoever lines up at left back for Inter. Continually a weak-spot in the team -- shared as it has been between Javier Zanetti, Cristian Chivu and, most recently, Yuto Nagatomo -- he will be charged with slowing Milan's rampant Ignazio Abate. Settling well into the right-back berth, the 25-year-old may not be Serie A's best in that position, where he has some heavyweight competition, but he is undeniably the league's most improved player over the past 18 months, offering both defensive solidity and a much-needed source of width, pace and creativity.

Whoever wins will take much from a positive result against such a rival; whoever seals the result will become a hero to his respective supporters; and, for 90 minutes at least, the San Siro will once again be the place to be.

Adam Digby is a Turin-based freelance writer covering Serie A.