The league-leaders Inter tightened their grip on first place after a whirlwind 2-1 victory over Venezia at the Stadio San Siro. Despite Venezia scoring the opener from Thomas Henry’s thunderous header, the Nerazzuri bounced back in order to complete an enchanting comeback. Nicolo Barella pounced on a rebound after Ivan Perisic’s attempt on goal and Dzeko saved the day with a last-gasp header from Denzel Dumfries’ spectacular delivery to secure all three points against a tricky Venezia side.
Inter XI
Samir Handanovic – 7
Despite the first goal occurring from questionable goalkeeping, the skipper made some spectacular saves in order to keep his side alive within this crucial fixture.
Milan Skriniar – 6.5
The Slovakian international played out of the back with great precision and made some impressive challenges to win the ball back. However, Skriniar lost some duels on the counter attack as he struggled to contain Venezia’s winger.
Stefan de Vrij – 7
The dutch stopper was without a doubt the best defender on the pitch this evening as he did a fantastic job at anticipating the play and breaking up Venezia’s attacking plays within the final third.
Alessandro Bastoni – 5
The young Italian stopper at a rough evening at the San Siro. The 22 year-old centre-back lacked precision within his passes and lost many duels within the first half, forcing Inzaghi to sub him off after the first half.
Ivan Perisic – 7
The Croatian wing-back was brilliant has he dominated the flanks through his incredible dribbling skills and delivered some impressive crosses into the box. He had some key attempts on goal, one of them leading to Barella’s opener.
Hakan Calhanoglu – 6
The Turkish international failed to have a significant impact on the fixture. Despite making several impressive passes and key dribbles, the 27 year-old’s performance was below-par.
Marcelo Brozovic – 6.5
After a shaky first half, the Croatian midfielder found his rhythm within the second 45 minutes of the fixture. He made some key tackles and added stability within the central area of the pitch.
Nicolo Barella- 7.5
The Italian midfielder shined at the San Siro this evening through his flare and creativity. He dictated the play offensively through his peripheral vision as he picked out passes in between the lines, along with his exquisite ability to dribble in tight spaces. He also found the back of the net as he reacted quickly to pounce on Perisic’s rebound, handing Inter the breakthrough goal within the fixture.
Matteo Darmian – 6
The Italian wing-back had a rough time manoeuvring around the right-hand flank as he struggled in one on one situations and made some sloppy passes.
Lautaro Martinez – 6
The Argentine had a lack-lustre performance as he failed to be involved within the final third and didn’t pose any significant threat towards Venezia’s defenders
Edin Dzeko – 8
The veteran striker flourished at the San Siro as he demonstrated a marvellous display tactically, dropping in between the defenders in order to find pockets of space. He was fully engaged within the fixture as he combined with the midfielders through one-two combinations and he had numerous attempts on goal. The 35 year-old rescued the Nerazzuri within the dying minutes of the game with a soaring header to sink Venezia and put nail on the coffin within the fixture.
Inter Substitutes
Alexis Sanchez – 6.5
Made some nice dribbles and added flare within Inter’s play within the final third of the pitch.
Auturo Vidal – 6
Won some balls defensively within key areas of the pitch, however, he missed a key opportunity that would have doubled the Nerazzurri’s lead.
Matias Vecino – 6
Made some key passes within the middle of the pitch.
Denzel Dumfries – 7
Dominated the flank through his fine-tuned dribbling a delivered a brilliant cross in the box for Dzeko to seal all three points.
Venezia XI
Luca Lezzerini – 6
Despite letting in two goals, the Italian goalkeeper made some impressive stops against the Nerazzuri this evening.
Mattia Caldara – 5.5
The Italian centre-back struggled immensely as he was unable to contain Inter on the counter-attacks. He lacked the speed within the line of defence and failed to make significant challenges.
Pietrio Ceccaroni – 5
The Italian centre-back was below-par as he failed to make one single tackle this evening.
Marco Modolo – 5.5
Despite failing to make a mark within the game defensively, the Italian centre-back did an impressive job of playing out of the back.
Ethan Ampadu – 6
The Welsh international made some impressive runs out-wide and delivered a well-weighted cross to provide the assist within the first goal.
Mickael Cuissance – 6.5
The French midfielder did a fantastic job of circulating the ball and delivering passes in between the lines to pose a threat towards the Nerazzurri defence.
Antonio Vacca – 5
Unfortunately the young Italian midfielder got subbed off early due to injury. However, he made some pretty accurate passes when building out of the back and moving towards goal.
Tanner Tessman – 6.5
The American midfielder was dominant within the midfield through his fabulous technique on the ball and precise passing within short-range. He made swift movements that caused Inter lots of trouble.
Maximilian Ullman – 5
The Austrian wing-back failed to pose any threat as he did not obtain any shot on target and failed to add any creativity within the final third.
Thomas Henry – 7
The french striker was prolific at the San Siro as he scored a thunderous header past Handanovic to hand Venezia the lead. He did a fantastic job of using his hold-up play to help pose a threat on the counter-attack and use his physicality to protect the ball in a brilliant fashion
David Okereke – 7.5
The Nigerian striker was brilliant as he used his immense amount of pace and dribvling skills to cause plenty of trouble throughout Venezia’s counter-attacks. Despite not scoring a goal, the 24 year-old brought vibrancy through his impeccable runs and impressive touches within Inter’s zone.
Venezia Substitutes
Luca Firodilinio – 5
Made some impressive passes but didn’t pose a threat when on the ball.
Dor Peretz – 5
Made several dribbles and a couple of precise passes, but did not make much of a significance.
Sofian Kiyine – 5
Was below-par within the middle of the pitch as he lost numerous duels within the middle of the pitch.
Arnor Sigurdsson – 6
Brought some dynamism within the final third but lacked the finishing touch to provide a game-winner.
Nani – 5
Failed to make his mark within the game as his positioning was poor tactically.