On a particularly warm Milan night in late July, Inter welcomed Napoli to the Meazza for the last home game of their season. Inter came out with purpose and pressed and harried Napoli from the word go.

It took 11 minutes for a nicely placed D’Ambrosio left footed shot into the bottom corner to put Inter a goal up. Napoli threw everything at Inter for long periods but their best efforts were long distance shots or deflections.

In the second half, Conte decided to make his subs 10 minutes earlier than usual and it paid dividends as Lautaro caught Meret sleeping with a vicious shot which killed hope of any Napoli revival as both teams looked tired by then.

Samir Handanovic – 7: Crucial saves in the first half, could have had a nasty injury. Much more like the Handanovic Interisti are accustomed to. Was in the zone.

Danilo D’Ambrosio – 7: Well taken goal, did his bit defensively too which is his forte. As is always the case with Danilo, he does the basics right with minimal risks taken.

Stefan De Vrij – 6.5: Such a calming presence to see him marshalling his troops. Moved the ball around well and when Milik got involved, managed to keep control of him.

Alessandro Bastoni – 6.5: Much improved performance from Bastoni. Attacked the flank at the right time and could even have had an assist to Lukaku. Will only get better.

Antonio Candreva – 6: As is with D’Ambrosio, Candreva does the basics right and as Conte wants him too. Just cannot make the right passes or decisions in attacking moves.

Nicolo Barella – 6: Always runs for two players. Always runs himself into the ground. Never stops patrolling the crucial areas defensively. Did not go forward enough.

Marcelo Brozovic – 6: Slightly improved Brozo performance. Defensively did very well most of the time, just his final pass and movement in attack did not click into place.

Cristiano Biraghi – 6.5: Continues his good run of form and seems to be enjoying no pressure football. Looked dangerous while attacking. Should have passed to Lukaku.

Borja Valero – 6.5: Made the midfield tick, especially in the first half. Keeps moves going by making the right passes at the right timing. Too bad he is not younger. Calm.

Romelu Lukaku – 6.5: Koulibaly is not the easiest guy to come up against, as many forwards in the Serie A have discovered. Not for Romelu though, kept beating him for fun.

Alexis Sanchez – 6: During the first half he did a lot of running and got into the best positions without any reward. Combination with Lukaku works almost every time.

Lautaro Martinez – 7: That goal sealed off the game and to most Interisti it felt like this bad run of form is now over. Looked like the hungry and alert 2019 Il Toro. Clutch.

Diego Godin – 6.5: Brought on to shore up the backline and as D’Ambrosio was on his flank, Diego managed to do it. Took the sting out of attacks with his guile.

Ashley Young – 6: Apart from one move where Lozano left him dead for pace, Young positioned himself at the right places at the right time. Nice option off the bench.

Victor Moses – N/A: Did not play enough to be rated but his explosive pace is something that can damage a lot of teams, especially on the counter.

Christian Eriksen – N/A: Only got to play the injury time minutes, not enough to get any rating.

Antonio Conte – 7: The start was typical Conte, as Inter pressed and pushed Napoli into the box. Lost initiative but kept the lead at half time. Good substitutions.

Paolo Valeri – 7: Kept the game flowing almost all the time. Did not give a lot of soft fouls and the bookings were also pretty much well deserved. Good use of VAR.

Inter – 6.5: Not the most pleasing performance but Inter got the result they were looking for to keep their noses ahead of Atalanta before the trip to Bergamo.

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