Lazio-Inter game pits in-form Lukaku against Immobile

By: Daniella Matar, The Associated Press Posted: 10:59 AM CST Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020 Last Modified: 1:21 PM CST Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020

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MILAN - After proclaiming himself the king of Milan, Romelu Lukaku can stake a claim to ruling all of Serie A this weekend.

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MILAN - After proclaiming himself the king of Milan, Romelu Lukaku can stake a claim to ruling all of Serie A this weekend.

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This article was published 13/02/2020 (2377 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MILAN – After proclaiming himself the king of Milan, Romelu Lukaku can stake a claim to ruling all of Serie A this weekend.

Lukaku’s league-leading Inter Milan visits third-place Lazio on Sunday in a game that also pits two of Serie A’s top forwards against each other.

Lukaku scored his 17th league goal of the season in last weekend’s derby win over AC Milan, when the Nerrazzurri fought back from 2-0 down at halftime to beat AC Milan 4-2.

Inter Milan's Romelu Lukaku, right, scores his side's fourth goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and AC Milan at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

After the game, Lukaku posted a picture on Twitter of himself celebrating his goal with the caption: “There’s a new king in town.”

However, he’s still eight goals behind Lazio’s Ciro Immobile, who tops the Serie A scoring charts ahead of Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo.

But Lukaku said he won’t be viewing Sunday’s game as an individual duel.

“I think that everyone has seen this team’s mentality, we never give up and we’re always looking to win,” Lukaku said. “I’m here to win and my only aim is to help the team get results.”

Many of Lukaku’s goals this season have been set up by Lautaro Martínez, and the formidable partnership will be rekindled on Sunday as the Argentina forward returns from a two-match suspension.

Lazio, meanwhile, has the second-best attack in the league with 53 goals, eight behind Atalanta. It also has the joint best defensive record, having conceded 20 — the same as Inter.

Lazio's Felipe Caicedo, center, celebrates with Ciro Immobile, top, and other teammates after scoring his side's first goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Parma and Lazio at the Tardini stadium in Parma, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020 (Claudio Grassi/LaPresse via AP)

Midfielder Danilo Cataldi believes the team’s success this season is down to their strength in the middle of the pitch.

“We have the strongest midfield in Italy, with incredible potential and players such as (Lucas) Leiva, Luis Alberto and (Sergej) Milinkovic-Savic,” Cataldi said. “I’m learning every day from them, I always try to help them to grow together.”

Lazio sits a point behind joint leaders Inter and Juventus, which has won the Serie A title the past eight seasons.

Inter won the last of its 18 league titles in 2010. Lazio has only won it twice — in 1974 and 2000.

“It’s too early to discuss the title, even if it’s only right to dream,” Inter manager Antonio Conte said. “A really intense period now awaits us, therefore, we’ll have to wait until after the next few matches to consider whether we can have different goals compared to last season.”

Inter visits Juventus on March 1.