Juve’s march towards the title continued with a dominant victory over Inter in the Derby d’Italia.
Juventus have defeated Inter Milan 2-0 at the Juventus Stadium in Turin on Sunday, with Leonardo Bonucci and Álvaro Morata netting for the Old Lady in a pulsating encounter.
After failing to make the most of their chances early in the first half, the Bianconeri came out in an increasingly determined manner in the second, with Bonucci capitalising on Danilo D’Ambrosio’s poor clearance to volley past Samir Handanovic in Inter’s goal.
With the Nerazzurri unsuccessful in creating any meaningful chances, the result was put beyond doubt when Morata emphatically dispatched his spot-kick late in the game after being on the receiving end of a clumsy challenge from João Miranda.
The result sees Juve’s lead at the top of the table extend to four points, whilst fifth-place Inter precariously sit one point ahead of a resurgent AC Milan.
Inter shoot themselves in the foot
Apart from the opening 10 minutes of the match, where Massimiliano Allegri’s side cut Inter open on no less than three occasions, the Old Lady did not pose too much of a threat on Handanovic’s goal, despite the fact they had clear dominance over the away side. In fact, the only key save the Slovenian had to make all game was from a well struck effort by former Inter man Hernanes, which the 31-year-old somehow managed to tip onto the bar.
The two crucial moments throughout the 90 minutes came as a result of errors from some of Roberto Mancini’s men.
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Firstly, D’Ambrosio made a hash of his attempted clearance off a Paulo Dybala delivery into the box that was sailing harmlessly out for a goal-kick, sending the ball across the face of the goal and directly onto Bonucci’s right foot. Secondly and lastly, Morata was in possession of the ball but with his back towards Inter’s goal and with a sufficient amount of Nerazzurri reinforcements in defence. Miranda made a cloddish and somewhat fatigued effort of trying to steal the ball off the Spaniard and was made to pay.
All of Inter’s hard work in their defensive third was undone by these two lapses in concentration, and perhaps a vital point was lost in the process.
Juventus superior in every manner
With Juve going into the match after winning 15 of their last 16 league outings, and a spirited comeback against German champions Bayern Munich during the week to boot, Allegri’s men were the clear favourites against a stumbling Inter Milan side that had won just two of its last eight in Serie A.
What was on display from both sides at the Juventus Stadium was exactly what was expected prior to the game. Juventus had Inter on the back foot and were dominating in every department. Sure, the Nerazzurri did well in staving the Old Lady off of their goal to a certain extent, though chances were still created and Mancini’s charges looked lethargic in midfield in comparison to those who lined up in white and black.
Defensively, the Bianconeri gave nothing away, in midfield they had the majority of the play and pegged their opponents deep inside their own territory, and in attack they linked up well and created opportunities.
Mancini’s tactics awful
Implementing a 3-5-2 formation that has scarcely been utilised by the Nerazzurri this term, Inter admittedly did appear somewhat solid in defence for periods of the match with Jeison Murillo, Miranda and Juan Jesus starting in the back-three.
It was not the formation that was the issue for the away side, though. The players brought into the squad who played in midfield were the wrong ones, and Mancini must take all of the blame for setting his side up in such an unambitious manner.
There were no creative players in the squad at all, with three defensive-midfielders starting in the middle of the park. There was no production for the strikers, and Mauro Icardi received close to nothing the whole time he was on the pitch. The player who looked most likely to create something for Inter was left wing-back Alex Telles, and he was eventually taken off in the second half.
The side Mancini put out was one that suggested the 51-year-old was waving the white flag even before the game commenced, and he received a deserved loss.
Result has big influence on Scudetto and top three
With Inter one of only a few sides in the league capable of keeping the Bianconeri scoreless, the result was not a foregone conclusion. Also with Napoli only a point behind the league leaders prior to this match, the 90 minutes that was to follow in Turin was one that may have consequences in the race for the Scudetto.
As well as this, Inter were aiming to get their Champions League bid back on track, with a win in the Derby d’Italia a result that would see the Nerazzurri close in on third place, with Fiorentina hosting Napoli on Monday.
With Juventus defeating their Milanese opponents, they may have just taken another step towards claiming their fifth straight Serie A title, as Napoli may not be able to overcome the Viola.
Inter Milan, on the other hand, are now clinging on, and one more negative result for them would see them drop entirely out of the race to qualify for the UEFA Champions League next season.
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