Goal-laden Inter

Inter made it a goal-laden start to their Serie A season with another high-scoring win. The match against Benevento at Stadio Comunale Ciro Vigorito was originally meant to be our opening Serie A fixture but due to Inter’s progression to the Europa League final last season, this match was postponed to the 30th September 2020.

Free-Flowing Attack Inter clicked into gear straight from kick-off. A goal within 30 seconds of the kick-off, the fastest goal in Serie A this season. The Achraf Hakimi-Romelu Lukaku link-up had yielded a goal for us against Fiorentina and that worked again here. Lukaku looked to have shaken off some of the rust to grab himself a brace. The one time he did fluff his lines, Hakimi was on hand to pick the pocket of a Benevento defender to score a deserved, maiden goal. Lukaku has also scored more goals for club and country in 2020 than anyone in the Premier League, La Liga or Ligue 1. Alexis Sanchez had a selfless performance, at times a bit too selfless as he tried his best to set his team-mates up rather than score himself. I was willing him on to score but he didn’t get on the scoresheet. Lautaro Martinez made it two goals in two games as he got off the bench to bag Inter’s fifth goal with a well-placed attempt. Stefano Sensi started the match but had an unusually errant performance, misplacing passes and getting caught in possession. He did better when he shifted out to the left of the midfield three.

Shaky Defence Milan Skriniar made a welcomed first start to the season. We love him but his exclusion at the tail end of last season has been deserved. He has been losing one-on-one duels, getting caught out and giving away needless fouls. There was more proof on Wednesday that he hasn’t got his form back. I hope he would be able to rediscover his form with more games as he is a vital cog for our defence. Inter’s major defensive problem was self-inflicted. In trying to play the ball out from the back, we started sitting deeper by the Benevento press. The passes were not sharp and precise enough and we couldn’t beat the opposition’s press. We conceded the first goal needlessly due to an erroneous ball out from the back by the captain, Samir Handanovic. For Benevento’s second goal, we got caught out on the counter-attack as we did against Fiorentina.

Arturo Vidal & Roberto Gagliardini I didn’t meet Arturo Vidal’s signing with great enthusiasm as I wasn’t sure on his form. He produced a very good performance in midfield but limped off injured. I hope he isn’t out for too long but I am sure he will miss our next match against Lazio. Roberto Gagliardini has been vilified by Inter fans for his performances at the back end of last season. Some held him responsible for us losing points to Sassuolo and Bologna at home in that run-in. His performance on Wednesday was bittersweet though. He scored a great goal, nearly scored a second goal, showed some nice touches on the ball. But was also caught in possession in a dangerous area, resulting in the concession of Inter’s first goal.

It is still very early days in the season. We tend to do very well in the first half of the campaign before suffering an inexplicable blip from January onwards. While the performances and results have been exceptional and confidence-boosting, we should reserve judgement until we have seen how we perform post-January. There are tougher challenges ahead as well. It starts with Lazio on Sunday.