Inter vs Atalanta 2-2: Spoils Shared in Dramatic Nerazzurri Derby

In what was one of the most entertaining and dramatic Serie A fixtures in recent times, Inter and Atalanta shared a point each in a 2-2 draw.

The Nerazzurri started the match strongly with Lautaro Martinez opening the scoring after volleying in from Nicolo Barella’s brilliant pass. Atalanta equalized through thanks to a magnificent strike from the highly reliable left foot of Ruslan Malinovskyi. La Dea soon went on to take the lead thanks to Rafael Toloi and lead at half-time.

In the second half, Inter found their equalizer through Edin Dzeko and were awarded a penalty. However, Federico Dimarco’s shot hit the crossbar. Atalanta thought they won after Roberto Piccolo found the net but his goal was ruled out for offside.

Eventually, both sides salvaged a point each in what was a thrilling contest at the San Siro.

Simone Inzaghi named an unchanged XI from their 3-1 win in Florence but the same could not be said of his opposite number. Atalanta made two changes from their victory over Sassuolo as Jose Luis Palomino was back in the starting lineup at the expense of Berat Djimsiti while Teun Koopmeiners made way from Remo Freuler.

Inter started the match strongly with Dzeko missing an early chance to open the scoring. However, roundabout 90 seconds later, Martinez found the net after meeting Barella’s fabulous pass with a volley. The latter got his fifth Serie A assist of the season, thus managing a goal contribution in each of his team’s league fixtures so far.

The Nerazzurri were looking to double the lead but Atalanta were compact enough to foil them. Dzeko could’ve made it 2-0 after Martinez’s pass found him, only for his touch to be a bit heavy.

La Dea also had their fair share of chances with Maarten de Roon coming very close to finding the net. Malinovskyi was persistently troubling the Inter defense and eventually equalized through a screamer from his left foot at the half-hour mark.

A few minutes later, the Ukrainian took another shot on goal which was blocked by Handanovic. However, the Slovenian put the ball in the path of Atalanta skipper Rafael Toloi who scored from the rebound to put his team ahead.

La Dea continued to threaten the Inter goal during the remainder of the first half but the scoreline remained 2-1 in their favor.

In the second half, Inter were hell-bent on leveling the scores and tried to threaten the Atalanta goal but were persistently defied by the backline. Atalanta had a glorious chance to extend their lead but Malinovskyi’s free-kick hit the post and Alessandro Bastoni did very well to avoid Duvan Zapata finding the net from the rebound.

Inzaghi made three changes before the hour mark as he brought Denzel Dumfries, Federico Dimarco and Matias Vecino who had a scoring opportunity but his header was tipped over the bar by Juan Musso.

The Argentine later managed to block Dimarco’s shot but Dzeko tapped in from the rebound to equalize for Inter. The match intensified as it entered the final ten minutes with both teams looking desperate for a winner.

Inter were awarded a penalty in the 84th minute thanks to Merih Demiral’s handball. Up stepped Dimarco but his shot hit the crossbar.

Further drama happened as Atalanta looked to have sealed the game in the 90th minute through substitute Piccoli. However, the goal was ruled out for offside. Inter had one last throw of the dice as Alexis Sanchez sent a cross in but Dzeko’s header was wide of the near post.

The final whistle ended an enthralling encounter with the scoreline reading 2-2. Inter registered their first winless result in a home league fixture since October 2020.

 

MATCH SCORECARD

September 25, 2021 – Serie A 2021-22 Round 6
INTER – ATALANTA 2-2

SCORERS: 5′ Lautaro Martinez (I), 30′ Malinovskyi (A), 38′ Toloi (A), 71′ Dzeko (I)

INTER (3-5-2): Handanovic; Skriniar, De Vrij, Bastoni (57′ Dimarco); Darmian (57′ Dumfries), Barella (90′ Satriano), Brozovic, Calhanoglu (57′ Vecino), Perisic; Dzeko, Lautaro Martinez (81′ Sanchez) (Cordaz, Radu, D’Ambrosio, Kolarov, Ranocchia, Gagliardini, Sangalli) Coach: S. Inzaghi
ATALANTA (3-4-1-2): Musso; Toloi, Demiral, Palomino (70′ Maehle); Zappacosta (77′ Pasalic), De Roon, Freuler, Gosens; Pessina (63′ Djimsiti); Malinovskyi (62′ Ilicic), Zapata (63′ Piccoli) (Rossi, Sportiello, Lovato, Pezzella, Koopmeiners, Miranchuk) Coach: Gasperini

REFEREE: Mr. Maresca from Naples
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Bastoni, Calhanoglu, Barella (I), Malinovskyi, Palomino, Zapata, Zappacosta, Toloi (A); Added Time: 1st Half ‘, 2nd Half 6’