For the past couple of month’s SempreInter.com’s new editorialist, Richard Hall, has taken a look back at the glorious history of Inter by highlighting a certain match, hero or any other event in Inter’s history worthy of being labelled Nerazzurri Classic’s. Ahead of tomorrow’s home fixture against Napoli, Richard looks back at a fixture between the two teams which saw Marco Branca emerge as a hero.
The Curva Nord are singing Marco Branca’s name, everybody is smiling, even Roy Hodgson, who is now speaking in Italian to the press. Paul Ince walks past with Roberto Carlos and Javier Zanetti and just at the moment you realise this isn’t some twisted opium fuelled, Sherlock Holmes style bender, Benito Carbone gives a wave.
The reality is, that this was the strange world of Inter in 1995/96; the sublime walked hand in hand with the ridiculous in those days and the term ‘crazy Inter’ has never been more apt. Three coaches in a season that saw the Nerazzurri finish seventh, also saw a Coppa Italia Semi Final as well as a disastrous first round exit in the UEFA Cup. Add to this the fact that Marco Branca finished top scorer that year and the memory really does need to kick in. Branca after all was a good player and not the evil villain that resonates in the thoughts of many Inter faithful.
It was in the back drop of this divine comedy that Napoli came to visit the San Siro, full of vigour but perhaps less hope. Their squad was a shadow of its former self that won the title not long before but out of respect it should be mentioned that they finished twelfth in this season.
The game itself started off in a scrappy manner. The first real chance was a free kick from Roberto Carlos whose audacious effort from 40 yards brought a good save from Joseph Taglialatela. Inter turned up the heat creating chance after chance. Three is succession were spurned , Maurizio Ganz and Felice Centofanti were first to blaze over, before a beautiful run from Ince saw the ball squared to Branca who missed an open goal.
Just as it looked like it was not going to be Inter’s day, Roberto Carlos helped break the deadlock. His cross flicked on by Branca found Ganz in space to tap home for 1-0. Now the flood gates would open. In the second half Ince was superb in driving forward and his hard work saw him fouled in the box. Ganz took the resulting penalty and slide the ball home after what has to be said was a monstrous run up.
Ganz was looking for a hatrick now, instead turned provider, when his superb cross beat all before him, that was apart from Branca, who stretched forward and poked home Inter’s third. With the game won Napoli switched off defensively and soon conceded a fourth. On the 80th minute the corner which came in was difficult to deal with; Napoli’s defence simultaneously misjudged it, in went Ganz but missed it, only for Branca to push it over the line. It was a typical striker’s goal on a day that Inter’s front two ruled supreme.
The season did not continue with results like this and was awash with the bizarre and the surreal. An 8-2 win at Padova was countered by a 4-1 defeat at Bari and win in the Derby was countered with (yes you can believe it) a 1-2 defeat to Padova. Add to this the fact that the world found out Roy Hodgson (an Englishman) could speak a foreign language and it is easy to drift back off into that smoke filled room in Baker Street.