Inter Milan recorded their second consecutive 2-0 victory over a weak Cagliari squad, keeping them in second place in Serie A behind city rivals AC Milan on goal differential.
Even if they have lost some key players to free agency this summer, Inter Milan still look like the polished team that defeated Claudio Ranieri’s Cagliari by a comfortable margin in Serie A. The game was effectively over once Denzel Dumfries stormed forward and slid home the opening goal, and it stayed that way after Lautaro Martinez neatly finished off a nice move on the half-hour mark.
Inter dominated possession and played a shutout in the second half after scoring two goals in the first half to display their superiority over the newly promoted hosts.
Inter’s forward play was greatly aided by Marcus Thuram, who both harassed the Cagliari back line when his team was out of possession and provided the assist on Denzel Dumfries’ opening goal with a delightful through pass.
The first goal was scored by Dumfries with a calm finish across the face of the goal, while the second was scored by Lautaro Martinez, who took his time inside the Cagliari box before shooting home from eight yards out.
Simone Inzaghi must be proud of his team’s performance, as they dominated the game throughout. However, Claudio Ranieri’s side showed very little in their first home game after being promoted and are still looking for their first win of the season.
Cagliari did everything they could to make Inter feel at home in Sardinia, but they still managed to create only one good goal opportunity for the visiting team.
Their best chance came when Paulo Azzi found himself in a one-on-one situation with the custodian, but he wasted the opportunity by spooning a weak attempt right into Yann Sommer’s hands, much to the chagrin of the fervent home crowd.
Only Zito Luvumbo and Tommaso Augello, both on the bench, showed any signs of originality, while Leonardo Pavoletti left the pitch after only 35 minutes with an injury, giving Ranieri even another headache.
Inter wasn’t flawless either; they became so resigned in the second half that they were practically horizontal, and Inzaghi likely would have been more on edge than he already was had Azzi converted his chance.
Despite the frightening conditions in Sardinia, they maintained game control and created numerous scoring opportunities.
Dumfries had previously set up his captain to hit the post, and Federico Dimarco posed a threat down the left wing the whole first half. His one-two with Thuram left Gabriele Zappa and Adam Obert for good before he fed Martinez for the goal.
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