LAUTARO MARTINEZ DOUBLE SNAPS INTER'S SLUMP, ENDS PISA'S CLEAN SHEET RUN
Inter Milan got a vital 2-0 victory against Pisa thanks to Lautaro Martinez's second-half double. The win snapped a two-game losing run and broke Pisa's four-match home clean sheet record.
Lautaro Martinez scored twice, getting Inter back on track with a much-needed win against Pisa, who had kept four straight clean sheets at home.
Inter was shaky after losing to AC Milan and Atletico Madrid. Henrikh Mkhitaryan was back on the bench. Luis Henrique got a rare start because Ange-Yoan Bonny had the flu, joining Denzel Dumfries, Tomas Palacios, and Raffaele Di Gennaro on the list of players who couldn't play. Pisa had only won once all season but hadn't lost in six games, drawing with Milan, Lazio, Torino, and Sassuolo. Daniel Denoon, Isak Vural, Mateus Lusuardi, Tomas Esteves, Ebenezer Akinsanmiro, and Calvin Stengs were out, and Adrian Semper had a stomach bug, but Marius Marin was ready to play.
Simone Scuffet stopped Federico Dimarco's free kick, and Francesco Acerbi was offside when he headed wide after a set play. M’Bala Nzola couldn't take advantage of a good chance because he didn't control the ball well.
Lautaro Martinez's header went just wide after a free kick from Hakan Calhanoglu. Pisa then had a big chance around the half-hour mark. Idrissa Touré headed a long ball down to Gabriele Piccinini, and Piccinini's volley went just past the post.
Soon after, Marcus Thuram's shot also went just wide, and Lautaro Martinez's volley bounced over the bar after a cross from Nicolò Barella.
Early in the second half, Touré sent a dangerous cross into the box, but Acerbi and Yann Sommer stopped Pisa from scoring.
Barella's shot was deflected over the bar by Raul Albiol, and Piccinini shot right at Sommer. Nzola then missed a great chance on a counterattack, shooting wide when he was one-on-one with Sommer.
Acerbi blocked Meister's shot in the box, and then Inter scored with a great goal.
Francesco Pio Esposito won the ball back on the left and crossed to Lautaro Martinez, who scored with a first-time shot into the top corner from 12 yards out. It was the first goal Pisa had let in at home since September 14, ending their run of four clean sheets.
Pisa almost scored when Nzola's header was deflected wide, but Inter increased their lead. After a corner wasn't cleared well, Andy Diouf passed to Barella on the right. Barella's shot became an assist for Lautaro Martinez, who scored at the far post.
Lautaro Martinez almost scored a third goal soon after, but he missed a shot after a cross from Diouf.
THE MCTOMINAY VOID: WHY NAPOLI STATISTICALLY STRUGGLE WHENEVER THEIR SCOTTISH STAR IS SIDELINED
With Scott McTominay sidelined by tendon inflammation, Napoli relied on a late Lukaku strike to keep their top-four hopes alive.
Napoli finally got a win without Scott McTominay, thanks to a wild stoppage-time goal against bottom-of-the-table Hellas Verona on Saturday. It’s the first time all season they’ve managed a victory without him.
McTominay missed his fourth straight game for Gli Azzurri. He’s been out since aggravating an injury in that 3-2 win over Genoa back on February 7. Right now, Napoli aren’t taking any risks with their star midfielder. He’s still dealing with tendon inflammation between his hamstring and groin, which has kept him from really training at full speed.
There’s talk in Italy that McTominay could be back for the Torino match on Friday. Scotland manager Steve Clarke has his fingers crossed, hoping his 29-year-old midfielder will be fit in time for friendlies against Japan and the Ivory Coast later this month. That’s when Scotland’s World Cup prep really kicks off.
Napoli have looked lost without McTominay. They hadn’t won any of the four games he missed, including a 1-0 loss to Torino back in October when he was out with an ankle strain.
But they finally broke that bad run in Verona. Romelu Lukaku came off the bench and buried a huge winner in the 95th minute, after Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro had cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund’s early goal for Napoli.
The win keeps Napoli third in Serie A. They’re 14 points behind Inter Milan, so the title is probably out of reach, but they’re still fighting for a Champions League spot.
McTominay wasn’t the only Scot involved. There were actually two Scotland internationals on the pitch at the Marcantonio Bentegodi Stadium. Kieron Bowie played the whole game for Verona and nearly put his team ahead just minutes before Lukaku’s winner. The former Hibs man, who netted his old club a £7 million transfer fee in January, got on the end of a deep cross. Napoli’s keeper Alex Meret missed it, but Bowie, stretching at a tight angle, couldn’t steer the ball home. It rolled right across the empty goal.
Things went from bad to worse for Bowie. Moments later, he was marking Lukaku in the Verona box. The Belgian shrugged him off and slotted in the winning goal. Another tough blow for Verona, who are now bottom of the table, nine points from safety with 11 games left, and they’ve played a game more than everyone they’re chasing.
Billy Gilmour also got a run for Napoli, coming on with Lukaku in the 73rd minute. He earned praise from the Italian media for giving Napoli a late boost. This was only his second appearance off the bench since coming back from nearly four months out with a groin injury. He also played in the 2-2 draw against Roma on February 15.
THE DE ROSSI EFFECT: CAN THE ROMA LEGEND SAVE GENOA FROM SERIE A RELEGATION?
Daniele De Rossi admits Inter Milan were the superior side after Genoa's 2-0 loss, but remains confident in Serie A survival.
Daniele De Rossi didn’t sugarcoat things after Genoa’s 2-0 loss to Inter. “We have to accept Inter are just better than us,” he said. Even so, he still believes Genoa can fight its way out of the relegation mess.
Genoa had just beaten Torino 3-0 and came into San Siro riding that high, but facing the Serie A leaders was always going to be a whole different challenge.
Inter pulled ahead thanks to a ridiculous bit of skill: Federico Dimarco volleyed in Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s chipped pass, and it was one of those goals you just have to applaud. Later, Hakan Calhanoglu made it 2-0 from the penalty spot after Alex Amorim’s handball.
De Rossi wanted more from his team. “We let in the second goal while we were pushing for the equaliser," he told Sky Sport Italia. “Honestly, I’m not happy with how we played. Sure, Inter are the best team in the league, but we didn’t do enough to make things difficult for them. I knew we’d need to be perfect to get a result here. We didn’t show up just to lose, but sometimes you just have to admit when the other side is better.”
Genoa have clawed their way out of the relegation zone with some good results lately, but even solid performances haven’t been enough against teams like Lazio, Napoli, and now Inter.
“Our spot in the table still isn’t great, but there’s a lot of football left,” De Rossi said. “I think we’re heading in the right direction, and we’ve got what it takes to get out of trouble. Just look at how we played against Lazio and Napoli.”
Since taking over from Patrick Vieira on November 6, De Rossi has led the team to five wins, six draws, and six defeats in Serie A.
“I’ve got a picture in my head of the team I want us to become, but time isn’t really on our side. The transfer window’s closed, so we work with what we have. Still, we’re making progress. These guys give me hope,” De Rossi finished.
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