High-flying Serie A leaders Inter picked mid-table Monza apart in a scintillating 5-1 victory at Stadio Brianteo on Saturday night. Simone Inzaghi’s team maintained their near-flawless away league record (W8, D2) with a dominant display in Lombardy’s mini-derby.
An early penalty converted by Hakan Calhanoglu fired Inter in front, with Lautaro Martinez doubling the visitors’ lead inside the opening 15 minutes. Monza thought they had cut Nerazzurri’s advantage in half midway through the first half. Yet, VAR disallowed Matteo Pessina’s header for offside.
Calhanoglu made it 3-0 for Inter at the hour mark following a lightning-fast counter-attack. However, Raffaele Palladino’s side replied through Pessina, who put away a penalty to give the hosts a glimmer of hope. Martinez’s second goal of the night doused that optimism in the 84th minute.
Marcus Thuram put the icing on the cake in the 88th minute with a routine finish from inside the box, catapulting Inter five points clear of second-placed Juventus. Without further ado, let’s look at our player ratings.
Inter (3-5-2)
Yann Sommer – 6
Though there was nothing he could’ve done to deny Pessina from the spot, the Swiss goalkeeper delivered another reassuring performance between the sticks.
Benjamin Pavard – 6.5
Caught napping on a couple of occasions, the Frenchman looked rusty at times but often found a way to get away from tricky situations thanks to his vast experience.
Stefan de Vrij – 7
Slotted in for Francesco Acerbi and excelled at the heart of Inzaghi’s backline. His positioning was impressive, his tackling timed to perfection, though he was slow to get rid of the ball more than once.
Alessandro Bastoni – 7.5
In addition to making light work of highly-rated Andrea Colpani, the Italian center-back had enough time to join virtually every Inter attack, delivering several teasing crosses into the box.
Federico Dimarco – 7
Perhaps afraid of losing his place in the starting XI to Carlos Augusto, the attacking-minded left-back reminded Inter fans of his immense offensive contribution with a sterling display.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 7.5
It was probably the Armenian’s liveliest performance in months as he showcased his stamina and outstanding ball-carrying ability on either side of halftime.
Hakan Calhanoglu – 7.5
Another penalty, another goal for the Turk. But he also grabbed one more from open play, casually slotting the ball past the Monza keeper from the edge of the box.
Nicolo Barella – 6.5
Though he wasn’t as impressive as his other midfield colleagues, the hard-working midfielder held up his end of the bargain, working tirelessly in the center of the field to help Inter establish supremacy.
Matteo Darmian – 6
Despite barely putting his foot wrong tonight, the ex-Milan defender committed a silly penalty to help Palladino’s underperformers avoid another scoring blank.
Marcus Thuram – 7.5
After wasting several decent-looking opportunities in the first half, the marquee summer arrival provided a delightful backheel assist to Calhanoglu before scoring one on his own to cap off a memorable night for Inter.
Lautaro Martinez – 8
There’s nothing more Inzaghi could’ve asked from his captain. Drew an early penalty and fired in from close range moments later to put Inter in a sailing lead at halftime. Bagged the visitors’ second penalty to take his Serie A tally for 2023/24 to 18.
Substitutes
Kristjan Asllani – 6.5
Davide Frattesi – 6
Carlos Augusto – 6
Francesco Acerbi – 6.5
Yann Bisseck – N/A
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