Following a scoreless first-leg stalemate, all was to play for between Inter and Milan in the return leg of their mouth-watering Coppa Italia semi-final tie. However, Simone Inzaghi’s men ran riot at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, pulling off a memorable 3-0 win to dispatch the arch-rivals from the competition.
Stefano Pioli’s men found themselves on the back foot from the get-go, and they never managed to recover. Inter arrested a three-game winless H2H streak across all competitions with an emphatic triumph as we take a look at the player ratings.
Milan (4-2-3-1)
Mike Maignan – 5.5
Gianluigi Donnarumma’s successor kept his end of the bargain, but the fragile backline let him down one too many times this evening. There’s absolutely nothing he could have done to prevent any of the three goals he conceded.
Davide Calabria – 5
Virtually invisible in attack and often reckless in possession, yet he completed several decent defensive tackles. However, Ivan Perisic gave him a rough ride, and the Milan captain will have to improve if the Rossoneri were to remain competitive in the Serie A title race.
Fikayo Tomori – 5.5
An uneventful showing from the French defender, though he let Lautaro Martinez slip his mark for the first goal and had a few poor anticipations in arguably his weakest performance in 2022.
Pierre Kalulu – 5
The Rossoneri rising star pushed Alessio Romagnoli to the fringes of Pioli’s squad, but Tuesday’s display was the one to forget. Caught off guard more than once, he did well to recover from mistimed tackles on several occasions.
Theo Hernandez – 6
Another electrifying performance from the flying Frenchman, but he had nothing to show for it in the end. Theo produced a couple of deadly crosses from the flank, while his well-executed set-piece deliveries were Milan’s best chances to score.
Ismael Bennacer – 5.5
Not as decisive as he used to be in some recent matches, as he often struggled to get his side on the front foot and orchestrate the play as expected. Dispossessed off the ball more often than he should have been.
Sandro Tonali – 5
Absolutely rock-solid at the back, providing further cover to Milan’s sloppy defence. However, he failed to create anything meaningful from deep in the midfield.
Rafael Leao – 6.5
Once again, Milan’s most threatening player on the pitch. The Portuguese winger was too hot to handle for Inter’s defensive line-up, but a lack of the end product cast doubt on another high-octane performance.
Franck Kessie – 5.5
Not one of the brightest displays from the outgoing Rossoneri star as he once more struggled in the No10 role. An absence of creativity and killer passes, coupled with imperfect decision-making, were plain for everyone to see.
Alexis Saelemaekers – 4.5
Another night to forget for the Belgian winger, who barely made Alessandro Bastoni feel discomfort at the back. Pioli was right to withdraw him at half-time.
Olivier Giroud – 6
Full of energy and desire, the veteran striker lacked adequate balls inside the box to put his lethal scoring instincts on display. The ex-Chelsea man won countless aerial duels with his markers but to no avail.
Substitutes
Brahim Diaz – 6
A breath of fresh air in the second half, the diminutive Spaniard carried his team forward through thick and thin, yet he should have finished some actions with more purpose and determination.
Junior Messias – 5.5
Much more involved in the game than Saelemaekers, however neither of his balls into the box found their targets.
Rade Krunic N/A
Matteo Gabbia N/A
Marko Lazetic N/A
Inter (3-5-2)
Samir Handanovic – 6.5
The Nerazzurri captain barely put his foot wrong throughout the night, making numerous key saves to hold Milan at bay.
Alessandro Bastoni – 6.5
Not many young centre-backs are superior to Bastoni, and tonight’s match showed why Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola wants to add him to his star-studded defensive cast.
Stefan de Vrij – 6.5
Despite being in and out of Inzaghi’s starting XI lately, the experienced Dutchman proved his value with another impressive showing, forging a formidable trio with Bastoni and Milan Skriniar at the back.
Milan Skriniar – 6.5
Like the abovementioned duo, the Slovakian was a menace to Milan forwards tonight. Outstanding with the ball at his feet as he was in the air Skriniar was impenetrable this evening.
Ivan Perisic – 7
If Inter had any doubts on whether to extend his deal or not, the Croatia international reassured everyone of his qualities with another sublime performance. He’s still one of the best in the business.
Hakan Calhanoglu – 6
Playing against the former side inspired the Turk to deliver one of his finest showings in 2022, even though he failed to either score or assist. He kept Inter’s midfield tick over in tumultuous periods of the match.
Marcelo Brozovic – 7
Tonight’s fixture shows why the Croat was indispensable in Antonio Conte’s Scudetto-winning team last season. Apart from assisting Robin Gosens for Inter’s third, the 29-year-old played close to perfection at the heart of the midfield.
Nicolo Barella – 6.5
Barella’s tireless runs on both ends of the field often made the difference. The Italian midfielder produced another energetic performance to help Inter keep up with Milan’s efforts to outrun them in the second half. Absolutely critical in the engine room.
Matteo Darmian – 6
His inviting ball in resulted in Martinez’s spectacular deadlock-breaker, but other than the assist, he struggled to get involved in the attacking aspect. However, he was nothing short of impressive at the back.
Joaquin Correa – 6
The Argentine forward may have set Martinez up for the second, but he made some awkward choices that could have led to more goals for the counter-attack-minded Inter.
Lautaro Martinez – 8
A match-winning performance from the superstar striker as he soaked up the limelight as tonight’s Man of The Match. The in-demand forward put on a masterclass display to show Inzaghi why he deserves a place in the starting XI.
Substitutes
Edin Dzeko N/A
Alexis Sanchez N/A
Arturo Vidal N/A
Danilo D’Ambrosio N/A
Robin Gosens – 7
It took the German only three minutes into his second Derby della Madonnina appearance to get on the scoresheet, slotting home an inch-perfect low cross from Brozovic.