There was no way Inter Milan were going to beat them. And so, fittingly, the Nerazzurri crowned themselves the new champions in the derby on Monday evening with five Serie A match days to go. Lautaro Martinez shed a tear
Statistics don’t always reveal the true picture. But in the case of Inter Milan’s well-deserved 2023/24 Italian championship, who are 17 (!) points ahead of the rest of the field thanks to their 2:1 win in the derby against city rivals Milan with five rounds to go, the situation is clear. The Nerazzurri’s figures underline what has been happening on the pitch for 33 matchdays – big and bold.
Only one defeat? The closest are record champions Juventus and surprise team Bologna with five each. 79 goals scored? The best figure, well ahead of runners-up Milan (64). 18 goals conceded? Only Juve and Bologna (26 each) come close.
That should particularly please successful coach Simone Inzaghi, who has been in charge since 2021 and has “only” coached a cup-winning team three times so far (Lazio in 2019 and Inter in the two most recent seasons). The 48-year-old former professional and Lazio double winner from 2000 orchestrated what was on paper a high-quality team into a homogeneous unit. Inzaghi also knew how to integrate new players such as goalkeeper Yann Sommer and goalscorer Marcus Thuram successfully and, above all, immediately
Lautaro is touched
While the former has scored an impressive 18 times (!) in 30 Serie A appearances after his brief Bayern Munich intermezzo, the Frenchman, who arrived from Gladbach in the summer, has scored twelve goals and provided eleven assists in 31 games. Thuram immediately emerged as a congenial partner to captain Lautaro Martinez (23 goals in 29 matches) – and that after the Argentinian world champion had only lost his long-time partner and guarantor Romelu Lukaku (Roma) compared to the 2022/23 season
On this derby Monday, it was Lautaro who stepped in front of the DAZN microphone immediately after the final whistle and expressed what Inter Milan had achieved on the way to the 20th Scudetto in the club’s history.
With slightly teary eyes, the 26-year-old goalscorer (at the club since 2018) said: “I have to cry because we deserve this joy so much. We’ve worked hard, suffered a lot – and I dedicate this title to my family in Argentina, my children, my teammates and all the fans.” He continued: “I’m doubly happy that we managed to do it here today. I told the team that we’re in a special situation that we’ve never been in before – to achieve a win here at the Rossoneri Stadium.” And to make everything clear in terms of the championship with five matchdays to go.
Incidentally, a Scudetto win had never been achieved before in the long history of Serie A – it was also reserved for FC Torino in 1947/48, Fiorentina in 1955/56, Juventus in 2018/19, Napoli in 2022/23 and Inter once before (2006/07).
“The party will not end tonight “
Lautaro, who is currently only under contract until 2026 and with whom the club has been working on an extension for some time, did not want to go into formal talks or future prospects at the end. He merely assured that he hoped the parties would find a good solution and continue their collaboration – and preferred to trumpet to the world: “Today I want to enjoy the Scudetto win that we have worked so hard for since the preparations in Japan. We have made history, the party will never end tonight.” And then? “We want to win many more trophies with Inter. “
