Midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu has earned praise for his perfectly-taken long-range goal to open the scoring for Inter Milan against Napoli.
L’Interista highlight the fact that the player ratings for the match across Italian media universally scored the 29-year-old positively.
There was a lot more to Calhanoglu’s performance yesterday than just his goals.
That is a kind of broad theme to the Turkish international’s time at Inter.
Calhanoglu has shown greater and greater physical and mental commitment in the defensive side of his game.
And the 29-year-old former AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen has also been Inter’s fulcrum in possession.
So all in all, it was another solid effort from Calhanoglu yesterday. The Turk contributed plenty to keep the team’s foothold in the match both in and out of possession.
But the thing that really marked it out as a memorable performance, no mean feat considering the consistency that Calhanoglu has shown this season, was of course the goal.
Hakan Calhanoglu Praised For Perfect Inter Opener Vs Napoli
Before yesterday evening, Calhanoglu had yet to find the back of the net from open play this season for Inter.
The 29-year-old had already scored six penalties.
Calhanoglu’s accuracy from the spot is one of the midfielder’s strengths, undoubtedly.
But anyone who has seen Calhanoglu play regularly, either in Serie A or in the Bundesliga, knows that the Turkish international is also a major threat from long range.
Whether from free kicks or from open play, Calhanoglu’s long-range efforts have a lethal combination of power and accuracy.
And in that respect, the Inter midfielder arguably outdid even himself yesterday.
Having a moment to line up the shop after Nicolo Barella teed him up, Calhanoglu could hardly have done much better with his effort.
Even considering the distance from which the Turk shot, Napoli keeper Alex Meret could hardly be blamed for letting the effort in.
This is because apart from the speed and power of the shot, there was also tremendous backspin.
The technique needed to shoot in this manner was highly impressive.
And for Italian media, it was a perfect effort for Calhanoglu to score his first goal not from the penalty spot this season.
