In their first major outing since last month's Champions League final, Inter Milan will take on Al-Nassr in a pre-season friendly on Thursday.

The teams meet at Osaka's Nagai Stadium, where the Saudi Pro League side held Paris Saint-Germain to a draw on Tuesday.

Match preview

Stepping up their preparations for the new campaign, Inter have travelled to Japan for a pair of friendly encounters - the second of which will come against Paris Saint-Germain next week.

In their final fixture of a tumultuous 2022-23 season, Simone Inzaghi's side were edged out by Manchester City in the Champions League final; leaving a bitter taste at the end of a year which saw them falter in Serie A but excel in cup competitions.

As well as reaching the grand finale of Europe's top club tournament, Inter claimed both the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana to further enhance Inzaghi's reputation as a knockout football specialist, but he has since had to rebuild his squad following some significant departures.

In addition to the ongoing Romelu Lukaku saga - the Belgian striker's on-off relationship with Inter has endured too many twists and turns to recount - defensive rock Milan Skriniar, playmaker Marcelo Brozovic and goalkeeper Andre Onana are among those to exit San Siro so far this summer.

Star striker Lautaro Martinez has been persuaded to stay, though, and will captain the Nerazzurri this year, while Marcus Thuram, Davide Frattesi and Juan Cuadrado represent interesting arrivals.

All three should feature regularly over the coming weeks, as Inter - who recently beat Lugano 3-0 and thumped 10 past Pergolettese in recent training-ground warm-ups - prepare for their Serie A opener against Monza.

Among four clubs taken over by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Al-Nassr have been heavily involved in the recent flow of players from Europe to the Arabian Peninsula, as a side already featuring Cristiano Ronaldo has been supplemented with several fresh faces.

Of course, Inter will find a familiar face in the opposition lineup this week, as Croatian midfielder Marcelo Brozovic joined Seko Fofana and Alex Telles in moving east - rumours persist that both Sadio Mane and Eric Bailly could follow.

Ronaldo arrived to much fanfare late last year, but he could not help Al-Nassr to lift the Saudi Pro League title, as the Riyadh club finished second in the final standings, five points behind champions Al-Ittihad.

Luis Castro's side have been playing a series of friendlies so far this summer: after defeating Alverca and Farense, then suffering a 5-0 loss to Celta Vigo, they were then beaten 4-1 by Benfica last week.

Ahead of their return to competitive action, in the Arab Club Champions Cup versus Al Shabab, the Knights of Najd most recently kept PSG's new-look team at bay on Tuesday. A 0-0 draw against the French champions perhaps bodes well for the new league season, which begins against Steven Gerrard's Al Ettifaq midway through next month.

Team News

Yet to replace Manchester-bound Andre Onana this summer, Inter boss Simone Inzaghi will turn to either young Filip Stankovic or recently returned back-up option Raffaele Di Gennaro in goal on Thursday; Ionut Radu has left for Bournemouth.

With Edin Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku also departed, Marcus Thuram started alongside Joaquin Correa up front against Pergolettese, while Lautaro Martinez came on in the second half and helped himself to four goals.

Yann Bisseck also made a first appearance for the Nerazzurri in Inzaghi's back three, and now fellow new-boys Davide Frattesi and Juan Cuadrado will aim to join the German in the starting lineup.

Amid an intense schedule, Al-Nassr's first XI could change substantially from that which faced PSG earlier this week - the Arab Club Champions Cup awaits them on Friday.

After netting 14 league goals in the second half of last season, star striker Cristiano Ronaldo is likely to make at least a cameo at some stage, while Alex Telles may play from the start after making his debut as a substitute on Tuesday.

Winger Ayman Yahya limped off with an injury during the first half of that game, so the Saudi Arabia international is unlikely to play any part versus Inter.

Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Di Gennaro; Bisseck, Acerbi, Bastoni; Cuadrado, Barella, Mkhitaryan, Calhanoglu, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez

Al-Nassr possible starting lineup:
Al-Aqidi; S. Al Ghannam, Oujami, Al-Amri, Telles; Brozovic, Fofana; K. Al Ghannam, Talisca, Ghareeb; Ronaldo

We say: Inter Milan 2-0 Al-Nassr

Even arriving in Japan with little preparation behind them, the team that came so close to being crowned European champions last month will have too much attacking verve for Al-Nassr to resist. Having racked up 10 goals in their most recent warm-up - albeit versus Serie C opposition - the Nerazzurri can now build more momentum by beating one of Saudi Arabia's top sides.


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