Lukaku Goal Secures Inter Ninth Consecutive Serie A Win at Bologna

There could not be a better return to Serie A action for Inter after direct title rivals Milan dropped two more points against Sampdoria on Saturday afternoon. In Round 29, the Nerazzurri traveled to Northern Italy, to take on eleventh-placed Bologna and extend their lead at the top of the table to eight points.

Prior to the trip to Bologna, Inter were on an eight-game winning run and a victory tonight would have extended that streak to nine for the first time since 2007. Bologna, on the other hand, have also been in good form, winning their last two Serie A matches against Sampdoria and Crotone.

Despite Bologna’s impressive attacking performance, Inter managed another hard-fought win this season – their ninth in a row – thanks to Romelu Lukaku’s only goal in the 32^nd minute.

With Milan dropping two precious points against Sampdoria, Inter opted not to pressure their opponents from the start and were happy to sit back and let Bologna have most of the ball. The first action involved Andreas Olsen playing a lovely cross in from the tight angle with nobody from Bologna in the box to meet it.

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? #Ravaglia gets the nod between the sticks ?#BolognaInter #WeAreOne pic.twitter.com/7MRXsHyd5N

— Bologna FC 1909 (@BolognaFC1909en) April 3, 2021

After a brief period of early pressure from the home side, Inter managed to regain some control of the game but found it difficult to play the ball into the path of both Lautaro Martinez and Lukaku. The main reason for that was Bologna’s relatively high defensive line that kept the Nerazzurri’s top two scorers away from attacking their box.

Bologna’s active press in the opposition half eventually forced the league leaders into mistakes. After winning the ball near Inter’s defensive third, Nicola Sansone decided to have a go from distance, but his shot went high over the crossbar.

It looked as though Inter had no answer to Bologna’s defensive approach until Ashley Young and Alessandro Bastoni alternated on the left-wing, with the Italian left center-back whipping in a wonderful cross from the left which met the head of Lukaku. The initial header from the Belgian was brilliantly saved by Federico Ravaglia but Inter’s top scorer of the season was in the right place at the right time to pounce on the rebound inside the box, making it 1-0 to the visitors.

After taking the 1-0 lead, Inter began to impose their game on Bologna, showing much more intent and purpose with the ball. However, the last dangerous action of the first half belonged to the home side. Jerdy Schouten wasted a big opportunity to get Bologna back into the game when he created a yard of space for himself and produced a mid-range shot towards the roof of the net, but Samir Handanovic pulled of a fine save to deny the Dutch international.

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Antonio Conte's starting line-up for #BolognaInter!

⚫️? #FORZAINTER ⚫️? pic.twitter.com/JcLgFsmfP9

— Inter (@Inter_en) April 3, 2021

The start to the second period was identical to the first, as Bologna tried to put the Serie A leaders under pressure from the off. The first dangerous play of the second half belonged to Sansone, who collected a pass on the edge of the box, but his shot lacked precision as it slipped wide of the right post.

Minutes later, Musa Barrow found himself one-on-one with Andrea Ranocchia but the Gambian international did not make much use of his pace against a slower defender and unleashed a shot just past the right post.

While Bologna dominated possession and pressed for an equalizer, Inter stayed true to their philosophy and tried to catch the home side on the counterattack. Nicolò Barella was the main initiator on most occasions, driving the ball forward and looking for the way to feed Lukaku for his second goal of the night.

Nonetheless, Inter’s composure at the back nearly turned into disaster when Milan Skriniar failed to time his jump and headed the ball backwards, which then fell at the feet of Mattias Svanberg, who fired the ball high into the sky.

In the last minutes of regulation time, both teams were involved in many scuffles, which forced the referee to show five yellow cards. Despite that, Inter managed to keep the advantage and won 1-0, increasing their lead at the top of the table to eight points.

A huge shift from the boys tonight. We couldn't be prouder. The only way is up ?#BolognaInter #WeAreOne pic.twitter.com/rnEmOGDIuC

— Bologna FC 1909 (@BolognaFC1909en) April 3, 2021

 

MATCH REPORT

April 3, 2021 – Serie A 2020-2021 Round 29
BOLOGNA-INTER 0-1

SCORERS: 32′ Lukaku