Inter Milan have reclaimed top spot in Serie A after overcoming Empoli in a narrow encounter at the Stadio Carlo Castellani.
After weathering an Empoli storm on goal in the first-half, Inter responded just seconds before the break as Ivan Perišic ran at the home side’s defence and fizzed in a low cross to the oncoming Mauro Icardi, who only had to divert the ball toward goal.
The narrow victory ensured the Nerazzurri returned to the summit of the Serie A table heading into round 19 against Sassuolo, while the Tuscan side’s impressive four-match winning run has been snapped.
Clinical Icardi key to Inter’s success
Following a slow start to the season the Argentine now has eight goals over 15 appearances in Serie A, with four of those coming in the last three league fixtures. The 22-year-old may have fallen out of favour for a short period of time under Roberto Mancini, however, he has shown his worth time and again for an Inter side that rarely creates opportunities.
The match against Empoli was no different. Icardi recorded just a single shot during the whole match, the one which resulted in the only goal throughout the 90 minutes.
The former Sampdoria man may not be as involved in games as he was last season, not due to a fault of his own, yet he is the same efficient poacher who finished as the league’s joint top scorer in 2014-15 with 22 goals. Eight from just 12 shots on target this campaign is a testament to this.
Empoli show their worth but are unable to get past Samir Handanovic
Marco Giampaolo’s side took the game to the Nerazzurri in the first-half, forcing many a save from Inter’s brilliant Slovenian goalkeeper Samir Handanovic prior to conceding before the interval.
The inevitable 1-0 loss is an unfair reflection on how the game panned out, especially in the opening 45 minutes where the Azzurri were all over their Milanese opponents, and the 48-year-old manager can be encouraged from what eighth-place Empoli produced against a very genuine Scudetto contender (at least for the time being while Inter continues to grind out results).
Having recorded four victories in their last four matches, defeating Lazio in the process and drawing against Fiorentina away prior to that, the side from Tuscany were brimming with confidence and exuded just that against Mancini’s insipid Inter.
As usual, talismanic veteran striker Massimo Maccarone, former AC Milan man Riccardo Saponara and the energetic Manuel Pucciarelli put in some big performances, though they were unable to get past 31-year-old Handanovic, who was as dogged and resolute as ever between the sticks.
Another 1-0 victory shows Inter will not back off without a fight
Last round’s 2-1 loss at home to Lazio could have been the turning point in Inter Milan’s season, however, Mancini’s men showed they still have a certain level of desire and determination in them.
Despite coming up against a fluid and attack-minded Empoli side who regularly ran at the Inter defence and tested Handanovic, the Nerazzurri gritted their teeth and held onto what became their ninth 1-0 league victory of 2015-16.
As well as this, encouraging performances from bit-part players such as Yuto Nagatomo and Geoffrey Kondogbia showed Mancini that he may call upon any player to do a job for him in the hunt for the Scudetto.
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