Inter have played out a 1-1 draw with Napoli at the Maradona. After a terrible 1st half, the Nerazzurri bounced back in the 2nd half to level.
Completely outclassed in the opening 45 where Inter conceded a penalty, Inter came out from the half time break to score just after 60 seconds into the 2nd half.
A match where not too much went right for Inter, but let’s look further into the match itself.
Consistently fantastic!
The Man of the Match for me was the player who’s been excellent this entire season. Ivan Perisic, again has shown all Inter fans why he is so valuable to this team. The amount of defensive contributions this guy does is so underrated.
As mentioned earlier, Inter didn’t perform too well in this match and if not for Perisic there may have not been a single shot on target in the first half.
A lovely run from Perisic down the left with a perfectly floated cross had Dzeko in a fantastic position to score. Unfortunately the finish let Dzeko down as the Bosnian shot straight at the opposing keeper Ospina.
I’ve been saying it for the entire season, Perisic needs a new contract ASAP. It’s gone beyond the point of “should we re-sign him?”, it’s now a must!
Since the beginning of the season, when Perisic has been subbed out we’ve seen Inter lose control of matches. The amount of work he does all over the pitch is so undervalued.
Especially today we saw Perisic pop up everywhere to put pressure on attackers and defenders. The best example was late in the match when Insigne made a great run for Napoli and Perisic was back there to help smother the shot.
Without this effort, we would’ve seen Insigne one on one with Skriniar inside the box where anything could’ve happened.
Sign this guy up!
Above: Napoli v Inter highlights.
Zero chemistry –
It’s nothing new as we’ve been saying it for a few months now but Dzeko and Lautaro just ain’t working. Every match we play, it just seems like our front two don’t even know each others names.
Against Napoli, both Lautaro and Dzeko were very poor. Besides the goal where Lautaro crossed it in, and Dzeko finished off a scrappy piece of defending from Napoli, there was really nothing else good from these two.
It’s quite difficult to bring in anyone else as we know Sanchez struggles when he starts, Correa is still injured and Caicedo is yet to feature in an Inter jersey yet.
When we signed Dzeko we saw it as a short term band-aid, but obviously Lautaro is proving that if Dzeko remains in the team we can’t play Lautaro.
Personally, I would like to see Lautaro have a chance playing as the main man upfront and trying to get behind the defence. A bit like a Harry Kane type of player when he is preying on a defensive lapse to get in on goal.
This season has always been about damage control, so I don’t expect Dzeko to stop playing now. We’ll have to see what next season has in store for us.
Damage control –
The last month and a half of football has been the hardest schedule I’ve ever seen an Inter team face in my lifetime. With the likes of Juventus, Milan, Napoli, Lazio, Atalanta and Roma it’s really tested Inter.
The schedule doesn’t stop with Liverpool coming up twice, then Milan in the Coppa Italia over two legs too.
Right now, we are just playing to hopefully stay in striking distance at the top of the table. Up to this point, we’ve done a spectacular job and the team should be applauded. We underestimate how much mental stress these fixtures must’ve caused.
It’s like playing a grand final every 3 days against the best teams in Italy and I can’t imagine how tiring this would actually be. Emotionally, physically and mentally.
If we can get to Matchday 31 still at this position on the table, you can guarantee this table is ours. We won’t be losing any of our last seven fixtures in the league.
Where to next?
San Siro awaits for a Champions League fixture against one of the best in Europe. Liverpool will be red hot and they’ll be waiting for us.
We must bring our best if we stand any chance in this match up. No matter what happens, I’ve proud of Inter for making the group stages for the first time in a decade.
Prediction: Inter 2-2
As always, Forza Inter!
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