Mourinho forced to juggle banged-up Inter midfield

Jose Mourinho's pre-Milan Derby worries continue to heighten the tension at Inter Milan after the losses of midfielders Dejan Stankovic and Thiago Motta.

Il Corriere Dello Sport reports that both the Serbian and Brazilian have been forced to give up hope of making Sunday's meeting with Milan, as they continue to work in the gym away from the rest of the squad.

And the casualty list has grown bigger as there are also major doubts over Sulley Muntari's availability. The Ghanaian was forced to leave training on Wednesday after suffering a muscular strain. He too is likely to miss the Scudetto showdown.

Mourinho has called up a number of youth-team players as a precaution so he can work towards putting together a strong enough midfield with the resources he has.

Ricardo Quaresma and Amantino Mancini are available, but the coach is likely to field a five-man midfield that can adapt with Javier Zanetti and Esteban Cambiasso in holding roles, while Mario Balotelli and Goran Pandev will flank Wesley Sneijder as part of an advanced midfield behind lone striker Diego Milito.