Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi is uncertain about the availability of defenders Stefan de Vrij and Matteo Darmian for Monday’s Serie A match against promoted side Como at the San Siro.
Inter, who are currently third in the league with 34 points from 15 matches, have only suffered one league defeat this season, a 1-0 loss to AC Milan in September.
The champions trail leaders Napoli by four points, with two games in hand, and are three points behind second-placed Atalanta.
The Nerazzurri are already coping with the absences of Francesco Acerbi and Benjamin Pavard.
However, their defensive issues have been somewhat alleviated by Alessandro Bastoni, de Vrij, Darmian, and Yann Bisseck, who have strengthened the backline.
Both Pavard and Acerbi have dealt with hamstring injuries this season.
Acerbi made a brief return last month, featuring in matches against Napoli and Hellas Verona, but has missed Inter’s last five games. Meanwhile, Pavard has been sidelined since the beginning of December.
“We’re dealing with a few absences in defence. Pavard and Acerbi are unavailable, and today De Vrij and Darmian also had issues," Inzaghi told reporters on Sunday.
"We will evaluate with the medical staff in the morning to see if they're fit; as of now, they're not. But we're hopeful we can ask them to make some sacrifices.
"At present, we hope to have Acerbi and Pavard return as soon as possible."
Inter will face Como, managed by former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas, who has led his team to a strong 2-0 win over AS Roma last week after a difficult nine-match winless streak.
The team previously defeated Atalanta and Verona in September before their run of poor form.
"I like Fabregas a lot. His principles are clear, and his team plays high-quality football," Inzaghi said.
"I already followed him in Serie B last year and this year in Serie A, they’ve competed strongly against top teams. Como is a side with great quality and always plays to win."
Looking ahead to the game, Inzaghi emphasized the need for his side to finish the year strongly.
"We're seeing the difficulty of a league where all the teams are running and there's a lot of competition," the 48-year-old Italian added.
"We know we’ll have to step up because next year won't be like this year, it will be a different battle."
