Having started their Scudetto defence with a 2-2 draw in Genoa earlier this month, Inter were keen to get up and running with victory over likely Serie A strugglers Lecce when the teams met in Milan last weekend.

Matteo Darmian found the net after just five minutes to put the Nerazzurri in control, and Hakan Calhanoglu later wrapped up three points by scoring from the spot - his 17th straight penalty conversion in Serie A.

A routine 2-0 win preserved Inter's 12-year streak of never losing their first home fixture, and the second-city giants have posted victories in each of the last six seasons.

Following a relatively kind start to the fixture list, Simone Inzaghi's side must now tackle one of Serie A's toughest tests in their final match before the international break.

The champions remained unbeaten against all of their top-five rivals en route to the title, so Inzaghi will be intent on continuing in that vein this term - starting with a Friday night contest against Atalanta.

Recent history is certainly on their side, as Inter cruised to a 4-0 win when the clubs met at San Siro last season - with Darmian also opening the scoring on that occasion - and last lost a league game to La Dea back in 2018.

In fact, Atalanta are winless in their last 11 top-flight matches against Inter, who clearly hold the upper hand in the sides' Lombardy rivalry.

While they may have come up short against their fellow Nerazzurri, the Bergamo club are still punching above their weight in Italy and beyond, having secured another top-five finish last season and claimed a first-ever European trophy.

Gian Piero Gasperini - who once had a brief, unsuccessful spell as Inter boss - masterminded their impressive Europa League triumph, but a tough summer in the transfer market has undermined hopes of a fast start to the new campaign.

With stars such as Teun Koopmeiners and Ademola Lookman trying to engineer an exit - in addition to other key men being struck down by injury - Atalanta followed up UEFA Super Cup defeat to Real Madrid by beating Lecce 4-0 in their league opener.

However - despite new signing Mateo Retegui scoring again - Mario Pasalic missed a stoppage-time penalty that would have snatched a 2-2 draw with Torino last time out.

Now, the Bergamaschi must face another away fixture while their Gewiss Stadium home is still being renovated - and perhaps the hardest one of all.