Icardi fit to face Napoli

Peter Hanson

Icardi fit to face Napoli image

Roberto Mancini has played down fears over Mauro Icardi's fitness and says the striker will play in Inter's Serie A clash at Napoli on Sunday.

The Argentina international is Inter's leading marksman in the league this term - only Juventus' Carlos Tevez has improved on his return of 14 goals.

There were fears that Icardi would be unable to make the trip to Stadio San Paolo due to a muscular injury.

However, head coach Mancini refuted those suggestions, saying: "Mauro Icardi is fine and he'll be involved.

"We might change one or two things but otherwise it will probably be much the same line-up."

The match against Napoli sees Inter go head-to-head with former coach Rafael Benitez.

Inter are looking to bounce back from a lacklustre 1-0 defeat to Fiorentina last weekend - a result that left them 10 points adrift of Napoli and the UEFA Champions League places.

However, Mancini is confident that he is developing a team that will be among the contenders for the title next term.

"The team has made a lot of progress," he added. "Next season we'll have a side capable of challenging for the title.

"We must make sure that the work we're doing at the moment - and we're giving our all - brings us results.

"The players are fairly calm, they can see they're getting better. We must never forget that we're Inter."

Peter Hanson