Inter claimed a well-deserved 5-1 victory in Monza on Saturday evening. The leaders were able to rely on two double goalscorers
The roles were clear ahead of the clash and Inter left no doubt as to who the favorites were from the kick-off. The leaders played straight forward and were awarded a penalty in the eleventh minute. However, the VAR had to intervene. Gagliardini deflected Lautaro’s header with his arm and, after viewing the video footage, referee Antonio Rapuano quickly pointed to the spot. Calhanoglu converted the spot-kick safely (12′).
The Nerazzurri had brought some real wit to the game and quickly made it 2:0. Mkhitaryan and the eye-catching Dimarco played the ball into the middle for Lautaro, who only had to keep his foot out (14′). The hosts from Monza were completely overstretched at the start and were lucky it wasn’t already 3-0 after 22 minutes, Thuram putting the ball wide left from a promising position.
The home side struggled incredibly, but came out of nowhere to equalize: Pessina headed in after a header from ex-Bremer Caldirola. However, the VAR intervened here too, it took a while, but then he recognized a very slight offside. Milan went into the half-time break with a 2-0 lead.
Fine play: Calhanoglu scores the brace
And Inter still had everything under control after the break. The front-runners continued to play forward with the aim of deciding the match early on. And they did just that: Calhanoglu made a robust tackle, giving Mkhitaryan plenty of space down the left. Thuram skillfully laid off his cross to the onrushing Calhanoglu, who finished freely from eleven meters (60′). After an hour, this duel seemed to be decided
Lautaro also remains ice-cold
Or not after all? After Pavard had missed a great chance to make it 4:0 (66′), it was suddenly just 1:3. Darmian brought down Dany Mota in the penalty area and Pessina converted the penalty safely (69′). Monza then tried again, but it was no longer really dangerous for the visitors from Milan. Lautaro finally dispelled any remaining doubts with his penalty (84′). That was still not the final goal, as Thuram made it 5:1 shortly before the end (88′).
The leaders continue their Supercopa semi-final against Lazio Roma on Friday (8pm).
