Internazionale did excellent business on Sunday evening in the hunt for the Italian league title. In their own Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, Simone Inzaghi’s team was too strong for AS Roma 1-0. Marcus Thuram scored the only goal. Thanks to the victory, Inter is back at the top of Serie A. Roma remains eighth.
Denzel Dumfries started at Inter. Stefan de Vrij and Davy Klaassen had to settle for a place on the bench. Rick Karsdorp started as a substitute at Roma. Romelu Lukaku, who played for Inter last season, was constantly whistled at by the home crowd when he got the ball.
The spell is finally broken! ??
Marcus Thuram shoots the leader into the lead in the last ten minutes ??#ZiggoSport #SerieA #InterRoma pic.twitter.com/EEbyqRWPF0— Ziggo Sport Voetbal (@ZS_Voetbal) October 29, 2023
The first big chance of the match was given to Inter. Denzel Dumfries pushed his opponent high up the field and delivered a cross to Thuram, who just saw his header turned away by Rui Patricio. A few minutes later Federico Dimarco also tried his luck. He shot the ball narrowly past the goal.
In the remainder of the first half, Inter remained the dominant party. However, Inzaghi’s team was unable to create any major opportunities until the extra time of the first act. Nicoló Barella reacted alertly to a rebound, but shot the ball sky high.
In the second half Roma showed more and more of themselves. Hakan Calhanoglu got away with a yellow card after a nasty foul in midfield. A few minutes later the visitors had their best chance of the game. Yann Sommer had a great reflex after a header from Bryan Cristante.
In the counterattack, Inter became dangerous through Calhanoglu. The Turkish midfielder shot from distance, saw the attempt change direction and then disappear just wide of Rui Patricio’s goal. Ten minutes before the end, Inter took the lead. Under the watchful eye of father Lilian Thuram, Marcus Thuram tapped a tight low cross from Dimarco against the ropes: 1-0.
| No. | Team | M | W | G | V | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Juventus | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 23 |
| 2 | Internazionale | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 22 |
| 3 | AC Milan | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 21 |
| 4 | Napoli | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 17 |
| 5 | Fiorentina | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 17 |
| 6 | Atalanta | 9 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 16 |
| 7 | Bologna | 10 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 8 | AS Roma | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 14 |
| 9 | Lazio | 9 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 13 |
| 10 | Monza | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| 11 | Lecce | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | -2 | 13 |
| 12 | Frosinone | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | -2 | 12 |
| 13 | Torino | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | -5 | 12 |
| 14 | Genoa | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -3 | 11 |
| 15 | Sassuolo | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -4 | 11 |
| 16 | Hellas Verona | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | -6 | 8 |
| 17 | Empoli | 9 | 2 | 1 | 6 | -13 | 7 |
| 18 | Udinese | 10 | 0 | 7 | 3 | -8 | 7 |
| 19 | Cagliari | 10 | 1 | 3 | 6 | -12 | 6 |
| 20 | Salernitana | 10 | 0 | 4 | 6 | -14 | 4 |