Top 5 Serie A Players Who shone During International Break – Including Juve, Inter and Milan Stars

AC Milan, Inter Milan, Italian Football, Juventus, Serie A

Following the end of the international break, Serie A fans have rejoiced as their favorite league competition is set to resume this weekend. But bear with us for a second.

Before we kickstart an exciting Calcio weekend that will include two crunch fixtures (Lazio vs Inter, Juventus vs Roma), let’s take a close look at five Serie A stars who managed to shine during their international duty, and will therefore return to their clubs after receiving a major morale boost.

Joakim Maehle (Denmark – Atalanta)

In the European World Cup qualifiers, only one team has managed to maintain a perfect record thus far, despite not being considered amongst the continent’s traditional elite.

Denmark successfully booked their place in Qatar 2022 after winning their first eight matches while astonishingly maintaining a clean sheet in every single fixture so far.

The Scandinavians have several Serie A representatives among their ranks, but in the last international break, it was Joakim Maehle’s time to shine.

The Atalanta wingback scored his side’s fourth goal against Moldova, while his strike against Austria was the lone difference between the two teams.

Dusan Vlahovic (Serbia – Fiorentina)

In Group A, Portugal were the favorites to seal the top spot from the get-go. However, the Serbians are putting up a fight, as they currently occupy the first place with a single point separating them from the Iberians who still have an extra match in hand.

Leading Serbia’s charge to an unlikely qualification is none other than Fiorentina’s young striker Dusan Vlahovic, who’s currently wanted by a host of top European clubs.

The 21-year-old scored the winner away from home against the resilient Luxembourg, and three days later, he bagged a personal brace against Azerbaijan to keep his nation in the fray.

Federico Chiesa (Italy – Juventus)

Unfortunately for Italy, Roberto Mancini’s men will return to their clubs empty handed – unless you want to count a third place finish in the UEFA Nations League an achievement to speak of.

Leonardo Bonucci left the Azzurri in a numerical disadvantage in the Semi Final against Spain, and although that incident mostly sealed the team’s fate, his Juventus teammate Federico Chiesa pulled off a venomous counter attack out of the blue, allowing Lorenzo Pellegrini to score a consolation goal and preserve the pride of the European champions.

The young Serie A star also delivered in the win against Belgium, winning a spot kick which was converted by Domenico Berardi, ensuring that the Italians’ international break wasn’t a complete waste.

Theo Hernandez (France – Milan)

Speaking of the Nations League, here’s a man who enjoyed his experience at the controversial competition.

Some players spend a lifetime serving their national teams without winning a single medal. On the other hand, Theo Hernandez only needed three appearances with France to grab himself some silverware.

The Milan left-back finally managed to convince Didier Deschamps of his credentials, and the latter handed him a starting berth as a wingback with his brother Lucas protecting his back.

The 24-year-old repaid the manager’s faith by scoring a superb late winner in the dramatic come-from-behind win over Belgium in the Semi Finals, before lifting the trophy last Sunday at the expense of Spain.

Lautaro Martinez (Argentina – Inter)

Throughout his time with the Argentine national team, Lionel Messi enjoyed the company of some of the best strikers in the world who played beside him. From Carlos Tevez to Gonzalo Higuain and his good friend Sergio Aguero.

And yet, none of them helped the GOAT in winning a single international trophy.

Enter Lautaro Martinez.

With the Inter striker on the field, Messi and Argentina finally broke their curse last summer by winning the Copa America.

During the October international break, the Serie A champion missed his team’s encounter against Paraguay which ended goalless, but then returned to put up a stellar performance against Uruguay, contributing with a goal and an assist before emotionally leaving the pitch to a standing ovation.

Moreover, the Nerazzurri star scored the lone goal for the Albiceleste in the 1-0 win over Peru, and he’s now expected to cement his role as the nation’s main center forward for years to come.

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