Djed Spence could finally make his Inter debut when the Scudetto holders welcome Parma to San Siro on Saturday, having not featured for the Nerazzurri since England's World Cup third-place play-off against France.

A €35m signing finally ready

Spence joined Inter from Tottenham in a €35m (£30m) deal in August, as the Serie A giants moved to replace Denzel Dumfries following his move to Real Madrid. However, a persistent injury caused him to miss the first five games of Inter's title defence, from which they took 13 points to sit second, only behind Roma on goal difference.

Spence enjoyed a hugely impressive World Cup campaign as England finished third, making 19 tackles at the tournament – the most by a Three Lions defender at a single edition since Ashley Cole registered 25 in 2002.

On Friday, head coach Cristian Chivu confirmed Spence will now be eased into his line-up over the coming weeks.

"He's been training with us for a week; we couldn't just ignore his rehabilitation period, plus the holidays after the World Cup," Chivu said. "If I add it all up, he's missed two months of work on the pitch. He's available, he will be called up, and we're pleased that he's back."

Chivu quashes formation questions

Chivu was also asked whether Inter might move away from their 3-4-3 system in order to adopt a back four, after Spence impressed in both full-back positions for his country at the World Cup.

"It's not a guarantee that playing with a back four makes you win, nor is it with a three," Chivu said. "The most important thing is the principles you have in the game. We are built to play a certain type of game."

The stakes at San Siro

Having fought back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Roma in their final game before the international break, Inter know a victory on Saturday will take them three points clear of the Giallorossi, at least temporarily ahead of Roma's meeting with Como on Sunday. Parma, meanwhile, sit 15th with four points from their opening five games, having beaten Genoa 2-1 last time out.

Players to watch

Inter – Lautaro Martinez: Martinez has scored consecutive braces in Serie A against Napoli and Roma, and he could become the first Inter player to score multiple goals in three successive appearances in the three-points-for-a-win era (since 1994-95). The last Nerazzurri player to achieve the feat was Carlo Muraro, between December 1976 and January 1977 against Napoli, Roma and Bologna. Martinez, with 136 goals, is also just two strikes away from equalling Benito Lorenzi (138) in second place in Inter's all-time Serie A scoring list – Giuseppe Meazza leads the way with 197.

Parma – David Romero: Romero has scored in his last two league appearances, against Genoa and Como. The last Parma player to find the net in three consecutive Serie A matches was Dejan Kulusevski in July 2020.

Head-to-head and form guide

Inter are unbeaten in their last nine Serie A games against Parma (W6 D3), winning four of the most recent five (D1). Parma's last league victory over the Nerazzurri came in September 2018. The Scudetto holders have also scored at least two goals in each of their last eight Serie A meetings with Parma – only against Verona (11 between 1997 and 2015), Sampdoria (11 between 1947 and 1951) and Cagliari (10 between 1996 and 2006) do they have a longer such run in the top flight.

Chivu's side could win all of their first four home Serie A matches of the season for only the third time in the last 35 years, after 2017-18 under Luciano Spalletti and 2005-06 under Roberto Mancini. However, Inter have lost two of their last four league matches following an international break (W2), after previously going unbeaten in eight such games (W6 D2).

Parma have lost all of their last four away league games; the last time they endured a longer run of consecutive away defeats in Serie A was a six-match stretch between April 2021 and August 2024. Parma coach Alberto Gilardino returns to the club where, as a player, he scored 50 goals in 96 Serie A appearances between 2002 and 2005 – making him the club's second-highest scorer in the top flight behind only Hernan Crespo (72).

Opta win probability

• Inter – 78.5%
• Draw – 13.5%
• Parma – 8%