Internazionale in charge of Serie A title race as Gatti own goal costs Juventus
A first-half own goal from Federico Gatti gave Serie A leaders Internazionale a crucial 1-0 win at home to second-placed Juventus on Sunday.
Inter scored eight minutes before the break as a cross into the box eluded Benjamin Pavard’s attempt at a scissor kick, and instead struck the stomach of Juve defender Gatti, who deflected the ball into his own net with Marcus Thuram lurking behind.
The result was Inter’s sixth consecutive victory and reward for an attacking approach from the start at a lively San Siro. The win moves them four points clear of Juventus at the top of the table, and the Nerazzuri have a game in hand on both Juve and third-placed Milan, who are eight points behind them.
“There are still four intense months to go with many games, we have to continue like this,” the Inter manager, Simone Inzaghi, told Dazn. “However, it is only one step in a long journey. Juve and Milan will not give up.”
“The way we prepared, played and controlled the game, we are very happy. The fans pushed us on from the warmup to the final whistle and beyond,” Inzaghi
added.“We earned a victory, an important and fully deserved win that we wanted with the whole squad.”
Thuram nearly gave Inter the lead around the 30-minute mark as he received a cross from Federico Dimarco inside the box, but Juventus defender Bremer thwarted him with a well-timed sliding tackle.
After taking a half-time lead, Inter continued to apply pressure in the second half with Hakan Calhanoglu hitting a dipping volley against the upright just before the hour mark. Juve struggled to make chances as the hosts looked the more likely to add to their lead.
In the end, Juve were grateful that keeper Wojciech Szczesny kept the scoreline close, making several crucial saves to deny Inter a second goal, including a point-blank block from Marko Arnautovic’s shot in the closing minutes.
“We are pleased to be doing so well, angry about this defeat, but I always said Inter were the favourites for the Scudetto and I stand by that,” said the Juventus manager, Massimiliano Allegri. “If we do well to win a few games and stay close to them, that’s good. Milan are in the mix too and the unexpected is always around the corner.”