Inter have finally won a Serie A match this season away from home against a direct rival after an Edin Dzeko brace helped gift the Nerazzurri a 3-2 win away against Atalanta.
The Nerazzurri started the game poorly and it was no surprise when Atalanta took the lead in the 25th minute from the penalty spot after a soft penalty was awarded to Duvan Zapata albeit a clumsy and late challenge by Stefan de Vrij.
Inter got back into the game when Lautaro Martinez flicked a lovely header on to Edin Dzeko who equalized in the 36th minute, which is how the half ended.
In the second half, the Nerazzurri began by barely striningg two passes together yet managed to take the lead via Man of the Match Edin Dzeko, as well as doubling their lead via a José Palomino own-goal in the 56th and 61st minutes respectively.
Palomino made amends 16 minutes later to pull one back and Atalanta pushed forward but failed to create anything of real substance which meant that Inter record their 10th win this season in the Serie A, their second on the trot.
André Onana – 7: Probably Inter’s most consistent player on the day making important crucial saves as well as helping out in attack with his fantastic distribution. Can’t be blamed for any of the goals.
Milan Skriniar – 5,5: Not exactly the best game by the Nerazzurri skipper who was late into the challenge for Atalanta’s second goal and generally looked off throughout.
Stefan de Vrij – 5: A poor performance by the Dutchman from start to finish gifting an unnecessary penalty to Duvan Zapata a player of his experience shouldn’t concede even though penalty was soft. Handanovic 2.0 situation.
Alessandro Bastoni – 6: The best out of the back three without being particularly good tells the story of the day they had collectively. Didn’t help out in attack as we’re used to seeing him but was solid defensively.
Denzel Dumfries – 5,5: Hopefully his injury towards the end wont cost him a spot in the World Cup but before that he made so many simple mistakes it was comical. Is simply not good enough to play for Inter.
Nicolo Barella – 6: A frustrating first half followed up by a much better composed second half where he really got stuck in battling for and winning the 50-50 balls.
Hakan Calhanoglu – 6,5: Battled and fought hard on Inter’s midfield in both phases of play but wasn’t able to help out as much as he would’ve liked given how Atalanta played. His set-pieces prove decisive yet again.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 6,5: Continues to show what a steal he was in the summer offering composure, intelligence and wonderful technique with the ball glued at his feet. Such a great option to have in the squad.
Federico Dimarco – 6,5: His first time crosses when given an inch of space are simply world class. His positioning defensively can be vastly approved but currently makes up for that with what he offers in attack via his left foot.
Lautaro Martinez – 6,5: Worked really hard today to lift his teammates and got a lovely assist for Edin Dzeko’s equalizer as well as causing Palomino to score the own goal which proved to be a winner. Good luck in Qatar, Toro.
Edin Dzeko – 7: Continues to score important and decisive goals when Inter need it the most. Neither of the two goals will go down as the most beautiful he’s scored but definitely among his most important since joining Inter.
Raoul Bellanova – 6: Came on for Denzel Dumfries in the 72nd minute after the Dutchman injured himself and showed what a raw talent he is thanks to his speed and read of the game. Final product OK but not there yet.
Francesco Acerbi – 6: Was brought on in the 72nd minute for Alessandro Bastoni to help sure up the defence but shouldn’t be played to the left of the back three as that exposes his lack of pace, which luckily didn’t cost Inter today.
Marcelo Brozovic – 6: Substituted on for Mkhitaryan in the 80th minute and immediately provides a calming presence in Inter’s midfield thanks to his ability to be a safe passer whilst withstanding pressure.
Robin Gosens – 6: Replaced Dimarco in the 80th minute and helped shut down Inter’s left flank defensively against his former paymasters, especially aerially where he is very strong.
Joaquin Correa – N/A: Came on for Lautaro Martinez in the 84th minute and didn’t play long enough to be able to be rated.
Simone Inzaghi – 6: Another big game against a rival where his tactics were completely off but for once had a bit of luck. Has a deer in headlights look at times which is incredibly frustrating not to mention his reactive substitutions.
Daniele Chiffi – 5,5: As always offers no consistency in games, disrupts the rhythm with ridiculous decisions which end up putting himself in the spotlight. Luckily none of this affected the final result.
Inter – 6: The 6 is a generously high rating given the performance whilst also maybe a bit low given the result but those two things are intrinsically linked. Need to be much much better against Napoli in January but luckily that game is a long way away.
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