Inter Milan showcased their resilience by overcoming an initial deficit to secure a 4-2 victory against AS Roma in Serie A on Saturday, putting a halt to Daniele De Rossi’s successful start with the capital club.
Despite trailing at halftime, Inter’s comeback ensured they extended their lead at the top of the league to seven points over Juventus, who are yet to play Udinese on Monday. Additionally, Inter has a game in hand due to their January trip to Saudi Arabia for the Italian Super Cup.
Roma, under De Rossi’s guidance since replacing Jose Mourinho in January and winning their previous three matches, remained in fifth place, accruing 38 points from 24 games.
The match began with Roma aggressively pushing forward, with Stephan El Shaarawy nearly scoring in the opening minute, only for his shot to be deflected by Inter’s goalkeeper Yann Sommer.
Inter took the lead in the 17th minute through Francesco Acerbi, who scored from a corner kick after Romelu Lukaku’s flick, a goal confirmed after a thorough VAR review for possible offside.
Roma responded swiftly, with Gianluca Mancini equalizing from a free kick, and El Shaarawy giving Roma the lead by halftime with a shot that hit both posts before going in.
The second half saw Inter’s Marcus Thuram equalizing with a first-time shot, followed by Roma’s Angeliño accidentally scoring an own goal, giving Inter the lead again. Alessandro Bastoni’s goal, off a pass from Marko Arnautovic in stoppage time, sealed the victory for the visitors.
This result extended Roma’s winless streak against Inter at home in Serie A to seven games, with their last victory at the Olimpico against Inter dating back to October 2016.
Inter’s next game is against the bottom team, Salernitana, before facing Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. Meanwhile, Roma will play Feyenoord in the Europa League, followed by a Serie A match against 14th-placed Frosinone.
In other Serie A news, Lazio moved up to sixth place with a 3-1 victory over relegation-threatened Cagliari earlier on Saturday.