Derby di Milano: AC Milan vs Inter Milan Pre-Season Clash

The Derby di Milano has travelled 13,000 kilometres and still refuses to lose its edge.

On Wednesday in Perth, AC Milan and Inter Milan collide in a pre-season friendly that looks anything but gentle. Fringe players, jet lag, tactical experiments – all of that will colour the night. Yet the rivalry will do the rest.

Cagey early, but level at the break

Both clubs arrive with patched-up line-ups and disrupted preparations, and that usually tells in the opening 45 minutes. Defensive units are unfamiliar, pressing triggers are half-learned, and distances between lines tend to stretch.

That matters here. Last season in Serie A, Milan and Inter both finished with just 35 goals conceded in 38 games, elite numbers built on structure and repetition. This week, they lean on rotation and rhythm that simply isn’t there yet.

Milan in particular often struggled to impose themselves before the interval. They failed to lead at half-time in 74% of their league fixtures. Inter, for all their power, were in no rush either: 21% of their Serie A games went in goalless at the break, the lowest first-half goal rate in the division, and they went in without a lead in 45% of matches.

Pre-season has followed that script. Inter were level at half-time in both their club friendlies so far, against Karlsruhe and Manchester City. Milan’s summer opener was even more chaotic: 2-0 down at the break, then a spirited turnaround after the restart.

Two of the last four meetings between these sides have also been all square at half-time. Different continent, same rivalry. The smart read is a balanced, probing first period in Perth, with neither side fully switched on nor fully stretched.

First-half draw remains the angle.

Milan’s psychological edge

On paper, Inter walk into this fixture as the heavyweight. Domestic double winners. A deeper squad. A coaching staff that has already banked two promising friendlies – a win over Karlsruhe and a penalty shoot-out success against Manchester City after a 1-1 draw in regulation.

Yet the derby’s recent history tells a different story.

AC Milan completed the league double over their neighbours last season, winning 1-0 twice. Those were not flukes. Tight, controlled, and ruthless when it mattered. Inter’s last victory over Milan dates back to April 2024. Since then, seven derbies have come and gone without the Nerazzurri getting over the line.

Milan have taken five of those seven. That run shapes minds. It gives Ruben Amorim, newly installed after the dismissal of Massimiliano Allegri, a ready-made narrative to lean on: this is a fixture his players know how to navigate.

The Rossoneri arrive in Australia at the start of a new era, still bruised by missing out on a Champions League place last season – the failure that cost Allegri his job. Amorim has already dipped his toe into pre-season, but many of his regulars are only just rejoining the group. Names such as Rafael Leao and Luka Modric have made the trip to Perth, yet extended minutes for them in this match look unlikely.

Across the divide, Christian Chivu faces a similar balancing act. His key men are filtering back, fitness is being managed, and the real business – defending that domestic double – lies ahead. Inter also have Juventus waiting this weekend, another reason to share minutes and avoid unnecessary risks.

Strip away the star power, though, and the derby dynamic remains. On neutral turf, in a fixture where Milan have repeatedly found a way, the Rossoneri carry more than just hope. They carry precedent.

Backing Milan to edge it fits the pattern.

Goals on the horizon, even before the break

A level first half does not mean a dull one.

Inter’s attack last season was ruthless, piling up 89 goals in 38 Serie A matches. They can overwhelm opponents in waves, from wide areas, from midfield, from set pieces. Milan, with 53 league goals, sat sixth in the scoring charts – not spectacular, but comfortably dangerous.

The numbers hint at early drama. Both teams scored in the first half of 21% of Milan’s league games last term, a figure that ranked them third in Serie A for that specific metric. Inter went one better, leading the division: in 24% of their matches, both sides found the net before the interval.

When two of the top three in that category meet, the expectation shifts. Even if the scoreline reads level at the break, the route there can be wild.

Over the full 90 minutes, both teams scored in 47% of their league fixtures last season. Inter also either scored or conceded inside the first 15 minutes in 14 of their 38 matches, the third-highest total in Serie A behind Como and Sassuolo. They do not ease their way into games; they light the fuse early.

In Perth, with defensive cohesion still forming and attacking talent keen to impress, that profile points towards an open, punch-for-punch first half. A stalemate, yes – but one with both goalkeepers already beaten.

How they might line up

The names tell their own story: a blend of core pieces and hopefuls, of established internationals and youngsters trying to force their way into the conversation.

AC Milan are expected to start with Torriani in goal, protected by a back line of Tomori, Gabbia and Pavlovic. Athekame and Ricci offer width and balance, while Comotto and Bartesaghi provide legs and industry. Ruben Loftus-Cheek should operate as one of the main reference points between midfield and attack, with Ossola and the highly touted Francesco Camarda tasked with carrying the threat.

Inter are likely to respond with Martinez in goal and a defensive trio of Pavard, Bisseck and Bastoni. Diouf and Dimarco patrol the flanks, Barella, Stankovic and Mkhitaryan form a technically gifted midfield, and Esposito partners Iddrissou up front.

These are not the final versions of either side. They are sketches, trial runs, auditions. But they are more than enough to produce a contest.

The verdict

The numbers, the recent history, and the context of pre-season all point in the same direction: a tight, competitive derby that opens up as legs tire and spaces appear.

A 3-2 Milan win fits the evidence and the mood – a game that swings, stings, and entertains, with Camarda announcing himself with a brace and Loftus-Cheek adding another, while Esposito and Diouf reply for Inter.

For Amorim and Chivu, the result will be framed as preparation. For the players, it is a chance to stake a claim. For the supporters, even in distant Perth, it is still the Derby di Milano.

And that, whatever the stage of the season, is never just a friendly.