Inter caught their second domestic win in a row as they beat Salernitana 2-0 in the Serie A Sunday lunch match. The Nerazzurri benefited from Lautaro Martinez’s first goal in five games in the Italian top-flight while Nicoló Barella scored the second of the day.
Inter came into the game to build up on their thrilling Champions League mid-week performance at the Camp Nou. Still deprived of Marcelo Brozovic and Romelu Lukaku, Simone Inzaghi offered no surprises in his trusted 3-5-2 formation with Edin Dzeko partnering with Martinez on the front line.
Between the sticks, Inzaghi put again trust in André Onana, who seems to have passed the veteran Samir Handanovic in the pecking order by now.
Salernitana’s Davide Nicola proposed a specular module and proposed again Krysztof Piatek and Boulaye Dia upfront after the two both scored last week and helped the Granata break a five-game non-winning streak. At right-wing back, Antonio Candreva faced his Nerazzurri past.
With Lukaku still at bay, Inter’s elephant in the room was Lautaro’s scoring drought. But the Argentine managed to break the curse after just 14 minutes of play today as he unleashed an insidious shot from out of the box that bounced past Luigi Sepe to break the deadlock.
The Salernitana custodian should perhaps have done better in the occasion, but Lautaro surely didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the situation and score his first Serie A goal in 47 days.
Simone Inzaghi’s squad appeared confident today. Their back-to-back domestic losses across the last international break appeared well behind them as they maintained control of the operations in the first half.
The Nerazzurri coach must have been particularly happy to see his stalwart Milan Skriniar not only shine at the back but also turn into a dangerous offensive weapon – like on 37 minutes, when his header from a Federico Dimarco cross drew a super save from Sepe.
Salernitana’s reaction was all in a shot from Grigoris Kastanos that hit the side netting. Then, it was Piatek to call Onana to action with a tricky drive that the Cameroonian had a hard time to neutralize.
Inter should have had their second before the break but Lautaro failed to connect with the ball from point-blank range, frustrating Skriniar’s work to recover the ball at midfield and Denzel Dumfries’ cutting pass from the right hand side.
El Toro tried to make up for the error right after the restart but his twisted header sailed above the bar. Salernitana replied with Dia, who called again Onana to action.
That seemed to be the beginning of a thrilling second half, but things quickly got easier for Inter as Barella scored the second of the day on 58 minutes, basically getting the job done for the home side.
The Nerazzurri‘s final goal of the day truly showcased their new attitude. Their pressing high up the pitch resulted in Hakan Calhanoglu recovering the ball along the midfield line and triggering a spectacular one-touch fast break. The ball eventually ended to Barella, who adjusted it with is right foot, then fired it past Sepe with the left.
Salernitana’s coach Nicola tried to reanimate his side with some substitutions. The Granata showed some signs of life as Flavius Daniliuc challenged Onana with a sharp free kick, while Federico Bonazzoli missed the target from a close range header.
There were no additional emotions though, nor any change in the score, as Inter could wrap their second win in a row and temporarily position themselves 7th in the Serie A table as they wait for top-ranked Napoli to face Bologna later today.
MATCH SCORECARD
October 16, 2022 – Serie A 2022-2023 Round 10
INTER – SALERNITANA 2-0
SCORERS: 13′ Lautaro Martinez, 58′ Barella
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INTER (3-5-2): Onana; Skriniar, De Vrij, Acerbi; Dumfries (90′ Bellanova), Barella, Calhanoglu (89′ Darmian), Mkhitaryan (73′ Asllani), Dimarco (63′ Gosens); Dzeko (72′ Correa), Lautaro Martinez (Handanovic, Cordaz, Bastoni, D’Ambrosio, Zanotti, Gagliardini, Stankovic, Carboni) Coach: S. Inzaghi |
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SALERNITANA (3-5-2): Sepe; Gyomber, Daniliuc, Pirola (83′ Sambia); Candreva, Coulibaly, Kastanos (61′ Valencia), Vilhena (76′ Bohinen), Mazzocchi (72′ Bronn); Piatek (60′ Bonazzoli), Dia (Fiorillo, De Matteis, Bradaric, Botheim, Capezzi, Motoc, Iervolino) Coach: Nicola |
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Daniliuc (S); Added Time: 1st Half 1′, 2nd Half 3′
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