Inter beat Cagliari by 3-0 and Mancini got a lot of positive notes from his players in tonight’s game. Normally cupgames like this against an inferior team from an inferior division means some trouble and some underestimating but for Inter it was nothing but a positive night. The team didn’t start the game very well and Cagliari showed that they weren’t coming to San Siro to give up easy. Cerri and Giannetti caused some trouble for the Inter defense and the last mentioned player forced Carrizzo into a good save after a poor Medel clearance. This made Inter wake up and the team went up higher on the field to put Cagliari under pressure which gave results.
Palacio forced a great save from Cragno after a good cross from Biabiany. The Frenchman started playing wide on the wing but then was taken inside the field and played as a trequartista. Biabiany has improved a lot since coming back from his heart problems and in the first half he was one of the best players on the field. Palacio’s header was great and typical Palacio style: A greatly timed run finished with a diving header. Brains and heart is all what Palacio is about and it wouldn’t take long before the Argentinian striker got on the score-sheet for the first time this season. Juan Jesus sent a low cross in towards Rey Manaj who deflected the ball, a free-standing Palacio couldn’t do anything else but to score and 1-0 was a fact for Inter.
In defense Inter was playing with D’Ambrosio-Juan-Nagatomo as central defenders. For us with weak hearts this didn’t seem a great idea but the players did surprisingly well to keep the defense stable. Roberto Mancini has proven that this Inter not only has one identity, but many and amongst these identities is the ability to be able to always guarantee stability no matter who is playing. Palacio teamed up with Manaj a couple of times more before the half time whistle was blown and I wanted to mention this from Palacio. He runs all the time, sacrifices himself and he’s also very down to earth. He’s a great example for players like Manaj and the fact that Palacio even passed Manaj when he himself had scoring possibilities was great to see.
The second half started out slowly, just as the first half. Though Inter woke up when Cagliari hit the post. Brozovic or #EpicBrozo as we all know him these days took the team by his hands together with Kondogbia. Brozovic first served Medel whose header went just wide and then the epic Croatian scored a great goal to make it 2-0 for Inter. The goal was a copy of the one against Udinese and the goalkeeper couldn’t do anything but to watch it go into the back of the net. Once I wrote that Brozovic might prove to be one of Inter’s best signings during recent time and he is now proving to be just that. The Croatian knows how to do everything and in difference from the players who are mediocre at everything, Brozovic is actually very good at everything. Of course he can improve even more but being the age that he is his class is very clear for everyone to see and I can’t keep asking myself why he doesn’t get to start more. The Croatian needs to get more playing time because when he does play he’s crucial.
Another player who showed his qualities in the second half is Kondogbia. The French midfielder both won the ball and did great passing. Before the third goal he got passed two players before being taken down. Inter proceeded play and scored the 3-0 goal which ended the game. Kondogbia who just came back from an injury will surely prove his worth and a little to much has been talked about his value. One would expect more from a player who was payed that much, but Kondogbia needs to be given time and without the pressure he will do really well. This was the first step in the right direction. The third goal was scored by Perisic who came on off the bench. Perisic just as Palacio will never be known as the best players in the world or even mentioned close to it but what they guarantee their teams is just as important as having stars. Perisic guarantees you tactical awareness, flexibility and a lot of generosity on the field. The Croatian winger once again showed his smartness by standing in the right place at the right time and instead of a Guarin-like shot that would kill of the Pigeons at San Siro, he buried the shot low and hard.
Even Dodo came on the field for the first time since March this year and looked quiet interesting. It’s now a great situation competing wise in the team and Mancini got great answers from all the players on the field. Inter won 3-0 and will now face the winner between Napoli and Hellas. The Italian cup is a competition very much up for grabs and Mancini’s last winning period at Inter started out with a cup win. The quarter finals are next and this was another great night for Inter. A lot of answers, no questions. Or yes maybe one, how much better can we get?
Until the next game. Forza Inter.
