The second Supercoppa semi-final took place tonight following Napoli’s 3-0 victory over Fiorentina last night. Lazio and Inter were both vying to join them in the final on Monday evening. In December, last time these sides met Inter came out on top, easily overcoming the Biancocelesti 2-0.
In the past few weeks however the capital outfit have been in good form. They beat rivals Roma in the cup and have Climbed back up to fifth in the Serie A table. Inter themselves are flying high at the top of the league under former Lazio coach Simeone Inzaghi. The technician has won four Supercups, including the 2019 edition against Maurizio Sarri who replaced him on the Lazio bench.
From the start the league leaders dominated the play and really caused alot of problems for their opposition’s back four. After just 17 minutes a cross was helped on by Federico Dimarco and Marcus Thuram had plenty of space to net the opener. Lazio couldn’t escape the sustained pressure and struggled to contain attacks in the wide areas. Nicolo Barella hit the crossbar before the break and Lazio counted themselves lucky to go into the break within touching distance.
The half-time team talk didn’t seem to change much for the Aquile and within five minutes of thr restart they were two goals down. Hakan Çalhanoglu followed up on his brace against Monza with another goal, this time from the penalty spot. Pedro clipped Lautaro Martinez in the box and V.A.R. awarded a penalty. Lazio couldn’t win a corner for the whole game never mind a shot on target in a very lacklustre performance and there was very little creativity in the centre of the park.
Luis Alberto was brought on to try solve this issue but apart from one or two brief phases of play nothing troubled Yann Sommer. Alberto’s most notable moment was a negative one as three minutes from time he donated the ball to Alexis Sanchez and Davide Frattesi finished off the move and the evening on a high note with a 3-0 win.
Here’s a look at our Lazio Player Ratings from a Ruinous showing in Riyadh:
Ivan Provedel – 6
Some good saves from distance in the first half and made saves you’d expect but the defence didn’t do him any favours this evening.
Adam Marusic – 4
Incapable of getting to grips with Inter’s width during the first 45. Matteo Darmian and Benjamin Pavard in particular were left with far too much space. Barella hit the bar as the Montenegrin didn’t check his shoulder.
Alessio Romagnoli – 4.5
Uncharacteristically disorganised tonight. Sauntered away from Thuram in the six yard box, resulting in the first goal. Too slow to close down players at the edge of the area. Small improvement after the break but damage was done
Mario Gila – 5
Also struggled with Inter’s attack as the Lazio defence came under immense pressure. Brust very far forward and was caught or slipped a few times leaving the defence exposed. On the other hand he made some crucial blocks.
Manuel Lazzari – 4
Weak attempt to stop the cross that led to the goal. This repeated on several occasions. Consequently pressure increased on the back four. Blind to a lot of danger on his flank particularly from Dimarco.
Nicolo Rovella – 4
Misplaced passes invited the Nerazzurri onto Lazio. Could’ve been more positive with his passing. A gaping hole was left in front of his defence all to often. Withdrawn at half time. No impact against his opposite numbers.
Matteo Guendouzi – 5
Unable to get a handle on the midfield battle and gave an indifferent performance in both defence and attack. Not himself.
Matias Vecino – 6
Showed he was capable of key passes but other aspects of his play dragged him down. Inter’s midfield has much more chemistry and quality. This made any moves in the centre complicated.
Pedro – 5
Probably Lazio’s most energetic and determined player in the first period. Unfortunately the ball rarely got to him so he was limited in his output. Gave away the penalty that Çalhanoglu converted. Didn’t create opportunities on the wing. During the second half things slowed down considerably.
Ciro Immobile – 4.5
Touch killed him a few times and he struggled to create space to get a shot away. Found some openings during the second period and even had the ball in the net but handled it in the process. The attack was disjointed tonight.
Felipe Anderson – 5.5
He came up against a very difficult task in the shape of Alessandro Bastoni and Inter’s aggression in general. Endeavoured to make something happen and his presence was noticeable on the pitch if not impactful.
Substitutes:
Luis Alberto – 4.5
Fresh energy was noticeable when he came in but it dissipated and he set up Inter’s final goal before full time.
Danilo Cataldi – 3.5
No impact at all in the centre and was overshadowed completely by the Nerazzurri. Very disappointing.
Luca Pellegrini – 5
He came on when the game was already settled and did little to change the outcome.
Gustav Isaksen – 5
The odd nice movement but by then it was too little to late and he couldn’t make it happen by himself.