Inter Milan maintained their strong challenge for the Serie A title with a composed 2-0 victory over Torino in a rain-interrupted encounter on Sunday, moving them level on points with league leaders Napoli.
The win takes Inter, who recently advanced to the Champions League final, to 77 points, temporarily drawing them even with Napoli at the top of the standings with two matches remaining in the season. Napoli were scheduled to host Genoa later on Sunday.
Despite their crucial Champions League semi-final victory over Barcelona on Tuesday and with a final against Paris St Germain looming at the end of the month, Inter manager Simone Inzaghi opted to rest several key players, including captain Lautaro Martinez, goalkeeper Yann Sommer, and midfielder Davide Frattesi.
The match experienced an early, brief suspension in the opening minutes due to a spectator apparently requiring medical assistance in the stands. Inter then took the lead in the 14th minute when Nicola Zalewski evaded his marker with a skilful turn before cutting inside and firing a low shot into the net from the edge of the penalty area.
Torino came close to an equaliser in first-half stoppage time, but Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez produced an exceptional one-handed save to deny a diving header from Che Adams.
The fixture was further disrupted by heavy rain and a thunderstorm, leading to a stoppage in the first half and a delayed commencement of the second period after referee Federico La Penna conducted a pitch inspection.
Four minutes after the rescheduled restart, with rain still falling heavily, Inter were awarded a penalty when Torino goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic was adjudged to have fouled Mehdi Taremi. Kristjan Asllani successfully converted the spot-kick to double Inter’s advantage and effectively secure the three points. As conditions improved, Milinkovic-Savic made a series of important saves to prevent Inter from increasing their margin of victory.
Torino thought they had a late consolation when Adam Masina scored with an impressive overhead kick deep into stoppage time, but the goal was disallowed for a foul by Masina on Asllani in the build-up. The victory underscores Inter’s determination as they continue to compete on multiple fronts.
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.