When it looked like Inter could finally turn the corner on the back of the Champions League win at Benfica, another shock took place on Saturday night. Serie A debutants Monza silenced Giuseppe Meazza as Luca Caldirola netted a late header to fire Raffaele Palladino’s side to a 1-0 victory.
It seems last week’s impressive 2-0 triumph in Lisbon was just a fluke. Inter cannot catch a break in Serie A, with fans booing the players after the final whistle. The Nerazzurri’s form wobble in the domestic championship continued last night. Someone has to take the blame and supporters already have a culprit.
Under-fire boss Simone Inzaghi has landed more enemies after his side wasted a golden opportunity to claw their way back into the top four. Following Milan’s 1-1 draw at Bologna, Inter could’ve displaced the Rossoneri in fourth. However, another underwhelming performance at home helped Monza snap a four-match winless league run.
Though Inter would likely stick with Inzaghi until the end of the season, it’ll take something special from the ex-Lazio manager to remain in the hot set beyond the summer. Saturday’s disappointment was perhaps the final straw as we look at the three talking points from Inter’s fourth defeat in their last five league games.
#1 Monza knock Inter down from eye-catching record
It wasn’t the first time that Monza frustrated Inter this season. Raffaele Palladino’s team bagged a last-gasp equalizer to hold the Nerazzurri to a dramatic 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture in January.
But they did go one better on Saturday to become the first newly-promoted side to defeat Inter in 29 Serie A matches. Before yesterday’s loss, Inzaghi’s men had registered 24 wins and four draws across 28 top-flight encounters against newcomers.
Moreover, Inter reached an infamous club record, suffering a third straight home defeat in Serie A for only the fourth time in history. What’s even more concerning for last season’s runners-up, they failed to score on each occasion, which brings us to the next point.
#2 Do Nerazzurri strikers practice finishing in training?
Inter failed to beat Michele Di Gregorio, but they cannot be accused of a lack of trying. Inzaghi’s men attempted 25 shots on goal, including six on target, and still came up empty-handed.
Truth be told, it was deja vu of last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Salernitana. Inzaghi’s team had 25 shots, including 11 on target, at Stadio Arechi but couldn’t take home all three points. So it’s not only a manager that deserves the criticism.
What about the strikers? Romelu Lukaku, Joaquin Correa, Edin Dzeko, and Lautaro Martinez were all on the field but could find a way past Di Gregorio. And it wasn’t just yesterday. Inter have only scored once from their last 50 shots in Serie A.
So the question naturally arises – do Inter strikers even practice scoring goals in training?
#3 Inzaghi won’t last long at Meazza
One way or another, Inzaghi won’t be in the hot seat next season. That’s a widely accepted opinion, not only by the fans but the entire football community in Italy. Lifting the Champions League title against all the odds could be the only saving grace for the former striker.
But no matter how far-fetched that sounds, maybe not even bringing the title home for the first time since 2010 will be sufficient to keep him at Meazza. After all, Antonio Conte is a free agent again. The same manager that ended Inter’s decade-long Scudetto wait two years ago could return for a second bite of the cherry.
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