TROPHY OVER STATS: WHY FEDERICO DIMARCO WOULD TRADE HIS GOALS FOR SILVERWARE
Inter Milan 2-0 Genoa: Analyse the tactics behind Dimarco’s impossible goal and Calhanoglu’s fitness journey in the title race.
Federico Dimarco doesn’t care much about his stats if Inter don’t bring home a trophy. He says all those goals and assists mean nothing without some silverware. Meanwhile, Hakan Calhanoglu admitted he wasn’t even supposed to take that penalty against Genoa.
Honestly, the mood around Inter wasn’t great after crashing out of the Champions League against Bodo/Glimt. They lost both legs in the play-off, home and away, and you could feel the disappointment.
Getting past Daniele De Rossi’s Genoa wasn’t easy, either. It took a ridiculous volley from Dimarco, squeezing the ball in from a crazy angle, just to beat Justin Bijlow. Then, in the second half, Calhanoglu came off the bench and put the game to bed with a penalty after Alex Amorim handled the ball in the box.
After the match, Dimarco and Calhanoglu both made it clear they want trophies, not just good stats.
“It’s never easy after a defeat,” Dimarco told Sky Sport Italia. “But every time we lose, we bounce back even stronger. We started to tire in the second half, but we got the win. I’m having a good season for myself, but it’s all about the team. If my goals and assists don’t help us win trophies, they don’t mean much to me. I’d trade some of my numbers if it meant we win the league.”
Dimarco’s goal was a bit of déjà vu for him. “It’s hard to describe. I scored a similar one back when I played Verona-Torino. All I care about is that we won. I’ve worked hard, and it’s paying off.”
This win makes eight Serie A victories in a row for Inter, and they’ve won 14 out of their last 15 league matches. But that run just hasn’t carried over to the Champions League.
Now, the title’s almost in their hands. Next weekend’s Derby della Madonnina against second-place Milan could basically seal it. Still, Dimarco isn’t looking past their next game. “We’re not thinking about the derby yet. First, we focus on Como, then the derby,” he said.
Inter face Como in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg on Tuesday, so there’s no time to relax.
As for Calhanoglu, he wasn’t actually supposed to take that penalty; Piotr Zielinski was. “I was out for a few months. It was only right for Zielinski to take it, but he let me have it. "I'm still building up my fitness, but I feel good,” Calhanoglu said. “We’re just trying to stay focused. Winning matters, and we want to keep this going.”
LUCIANO SPALLETTI OFFICIALLY EXTENDS JUVENTUS TENURE UNTIL 2028 AFTER IMPRESSIVE INTERIM SPELL
Juventus coach Spalletti extends his contract until 2028. Get the latest on the Serie A top-four race and match news.
Juventus coach Luciano Spalletti just signed a new two-year deal with the club, capping off a promising six months at the helm.
He broke the news to his players first, right before Friday’s training session. Not long after, Juventus posted a video of Spalletti sharing the update. “I wanted you to hear it from me before anyone else,” he told the squad. “We’ve decided to extend my contract by another two years. I wanted to tell you before the news got out. Honestly, the road ahead looks tough, but I’m convinced we’ll tackle it together. With your character and your fight, we can turn every challenge into something bigger.”
Spalletti took charge back in October, stepping in after Juventus sacked Igor Tudor. Tudor’s departure came after three straight losses and a long, frustrating stretch without a win. At the time, Juventus handed Spalletti an eight-month contract. The word was, he'd get an automatic two-year extension if the team qualified for the Champions League.
Right now, Juventus sits just outside the Champions League spots, one point back from fourth-place Como, with seven games left in the season.
“When I joined seven months ago, the club gave me this short contract,” Spalletti explained. “The idea was simple: let’s give it some time, get to know each other, then decide at the end of the season if we want to keep going.”
Back then, Juventus sat in seventh place, fighting just to stay in Europe. In the Champions League, they were already scrambling to avoid elimination.
Things have improved since Spalletti took over. Juventus has picked up 17 wins, six losses, and eight draws in 31 matches. They managed to push through to the Champions League playoffs, though Galatasaray knocked them out.
Club CEO Damien Comolli praised Spalletti’s impact. “Since joining us, Luciano’s made a real difference on the pitch, around the club, and among our fans,” Comolli said. “He’s exactly the kind of leader we need. His ambitious football matches what we all expect from Juventus, and he stands for what our club’s all about. So, we want to keep going with him. We believe stability and continuity are key to reaching our goals.”
Juventus hasn’t lifted the Serie A trophy since 2020, when they wrapped up a run of nine straight titles.
Before arriving in Turin, Spalletti led Napoli to the Serie A title in 2023, then took charge of Italy’s national team. That stint didn’t go well; he lost his job last June after a shaky start in World Cup qualifying. Now, he’s got another shot to lead a powerhouse club.
NAPOLI LEAPFROG AC MILAN INTO SECOND PLACE WITH VITAL 1-0 SAN SIRO VICTORY
Napoli beat AC Milan 1-0 to move into second place. Discover how Politano and McTominay are chasing Inter for the title.
Napoli snatched a late 1-0 win over AC Milan at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, keeping their hopes for a second straight Serie A title very much alive. Scott McTominay played the entire match, and with Napoli sitting third before kickoff, their victory bumped them ahead of Milan into second place, just seven points behind Inter. That gap was a daunting 11 points a mere three weeks ago, but Napoli's five-game winning streak, combined with Inter dropping points, has changed the picture fast. With seven matches left, McTominay and the team aren’t giving up on defending their scudetto.
Early in the game, McTominay nearly had Napoli fans holding their breath when he tried a bicycle kick, a move that’s become one of his signatures. This time, though, he couldn't duplicate his Hampden magic from last November against Denmark. The ball skipped wide.
The game felt tense and looked to be heading for a draw until the 79th minute. That’s when Napoli broke through with a quick attack down the left. McTominay didn’t get the goal, but his movement from a Mathias Olivera cross caused chaos in the Milan box. Matteo Politano, coming on as a sub, pounced at the far post and put in a tidy left-footed finish.
Billy Gilmour, McTominay’s Scotland teammate, didn’t get on the pitch. He’d started in three of his last four Serie A appearances, but this time watched from the bench.
Napoli’s next game takes them away to Parma, who sit in 13th. Inter travelled to play Como later that same day. Talking about the title race, manager Antonio Conte said, “Scudetto? It's tough. Inter is really strong and is having an incredible season. We can’t slip up; we need them to make mistakes, and not just once. Honestly, we have to be realistic… Inter deserves to lead. Still, we’ve won the Supercoppa and sit second. We should be pretty happy. With all our injuries and problems, this season could easily have gone off the rails.”
Around the rest of Serie A, Lennon Miller, who didn’t see action for Scotland over the international break, came off the bench for Udinese in the 65th minute of their scoreless draw with Como. On Sunday, Lewis Ferguson saw red for the first time in Italy after picking up two yellows in thirty seconds late in Bologna’s 2-1 win at Cremonese. Che Adams found the net for Torino in their 1-0 victory over Pisa.
