Fiorentina proved their ‘purple patch’ on the eve of March’s international break was no fluke, toppling Inter 1-0 at Giuseppe Meazza on Saturday. Don’t let the scoreline trick you into believing it was an uneventful affair in Lombardia, as both chances squandered countless chances.
With their bid to secure another top-four finish up in the air following an abysmal run of three defeats in the last four league matches (W1), Inter hoped to turn the corner in their first post-international break fixture. On the other hand, the visitors were out to post their fifth straight Serie A win for the first time since 2018.
Vincenzo Italiano’s men were in the red-hot form before the international window curtailed their momentum, racking up four league wins on the trot to ascend to the upper half of the table. And they had the opening chance of tonight’s game, as Gaetano Castrovilli had a crack at goal from mid-range, only for Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana to deliver a top-class save 14 minutes in.
Simone Inzaghi’s team first had a clear sight of goal in the 21st minute. Henrikh Mkhitaryan dribbled past a couple of Fiorentina defenders to set himself up nicely around the spot but failed to generate enough power and precision, with his wayward finish flying wide of the mark. It was a sign of things to come, though.
Back to the starting line-up, Romelu Lukaku came close to finding the opener at the half-hour mark, but his shot from inside the box was cleared with a last-gasp intervention. Fiorentina were inches away from punishing the Belgium international’s miss soon after. Jonathan Ikone couldn’t connect with an inviting ball into the box as a golden chance went begging toward the tail-end of the first half.
Inter almost got off to a flying start to the second half, but Lukaku’s incredible miss from point-blank only four minutes after the interval will occupy a special place on Twitter. Alessandro Bastoni played a delightful through ball to the Belgian striker, who failed to hit the target from a few yards out, letting down his teammates again.
As it’s often been the case in football, it didn’t take long before Fiorentina made Lukaku’s epic blunder backfire on Inter. Only three minutes after Inzaghi’s side wasted a glorious opportunity to go 1-0 up, La Viola stunned Giuseppe Meazza through ex-Milan man Giacomo Bonaventura.
Cristiano Biraghi whipped an inviting cross from a corner, with Onana pulling off a vital stop to deny in-form Arthur Cabral on the near post. However, Bonaventura was in the right place at the right time to pick up the pieces, stabbing home from close proximity to break the deadlock in the 53rd minute.
Unfazed by a shocking deficit, Inter went ‘all out attack’ in search of an all-important equalizer. Nicolo Barella was quick to collect the rebound on the edge of the penalty area and unleash a thunderous half-volley on the cusp of the hour mark, but the right post deflected off what would’ve been a spectacular strike.
Fiorentina replied immediately after through Ikone. Bonaventura played the Frenchman in with an inch-perfect, defense-splitting pass, yet the ex-Lille forward missed the target by some margin in a one-on-one situation. Faced with another underwhelming result, under-pressure Inzaghi reached out to his bench to try to turn things around, which almost paid off instantly.
Just over ten minutes after replacing Robin Gosens, Raoul Bellanova found himself in a presentable opportunity to open his Inter account. However, Pietro Terracciano produced a terrific save to thwart the full-back’s attempt from inside the six-yard box in the 74th minute. Unfortunately for Inzaghi, it proved the last clear-cut chance for Inter.
After losing three consecutive Serie A outings for the first time since 2017, Inter run the risk of dropping out of Champions League placings by the end of this round. These are tumultuous times at Meazza, and being in Inzaghi’s skin must be the hardest place to be in right now.
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