The 217th Derby di Milano between Inter Milan and AC Milan took place last night and served up a match worthy of the prestige and history that the derby holds. Derbies are a significant part of football and all over the world derby games ignite a passion among the players and supporters which is seldom present in other matches.
The emotional quotient of the match which strictly involves bragging rights have often led to tumultuous emotions on display, which at times have escalated into issues of violence. However, the 217th meeting was a peaceful affair in the stands.
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And violence here was restricted to the finishing style. Perisic’s late equaliser cancelled out Suso’s brace to earn Internazionale a deserved point. Earlier, Candreva had viciously lashed the ball into the goal to cancel out Suso’s opener. The match also saw the referee dish out a total of six yellow cards two for Milan and 4 for the Inter side.
A defeat for Inter would have seen their cross-town rivals extend the gap between themselves to a minimum of 10 points and Inter did well on the night to avoid further imbarazzo (embarrassment).
#1 Suso’s magical finishes help Milan maintain the course
For followers of Liverpool in the Premier League, the no.8 of Rossoneri would have been a familiar face. But what must have not been familiar is the swish of the left boot which was responsible for turning the Derby Della Madonnina on its head.
42 minutes into the first half, Bonaventura played the ball to his right to Suso, who wasted no time in cutting inside and curling a fabulous shot across the goal and into the far corner. The shot’s perfection left the keeper grasping at thin air.
And just to show that the first finish wasn’t an aberration, Suso again was on the scoresheet in the 58th minute as he left Miranda in his wake through some nifty footwork in the box to place a right foot finish past the keeper to give the lead.
On any other night, the finishes by the Spaniard would have been enough to give his team the deserved three points. But unlike fairytales which meander towards a happy ending, football games aren’t so and Inter were on hand to grab the late equaliser which took the sheen off the 23-year-old’s efforts.
#2 Perisic’s equaliser just a reward for Inter Milan
Coming into this game, Inter were 8 points behind their neighbour and 9 places below them which made them underdogs. However, derbies take on an own life in the bigger scheme of things – league form is thrown out when it comes to derbies.
Inter, in fact, dominated the game over their young and high-flying neighbours. Inter hogged possession to the extent of 66 percent and had 21 shots on goal. Their completion of passes was double the number of their opposition in addition to their accuracy of 85 percent in passing.
And it was a deserved equaliser when Perisic finally found a way through in stoppage time. Inter’s push for the equaliser saw them commit all men forward when a corner was awarded in the dying moments of the game.
The goal which had a hint of offside was adjudged fair after replays confirmed the match official’s decision. The 18-year-old, Locatelli, seemed devastated at losing the Croatian as he snuck in at the far post to apply a first-time finish.
And indeed the joy of the equaliser was evident as Pioli, the Inter manager ran onto the pitch to celebrate with his players.
#3 Youthful Milan continue their resurgence
Vincenzo Montella, the current Milan coach has sown seeds of belief ever since he took charge of Milan in the summer. His youthful side has defied the odds and coming into the game had won eight of their first 12 league fixtures. Coming into this game, they were in fact, touted as the favourites and would have come away with a win if not for Perisic’s late goal.
Locatelli led the charge in midfield in the absence of captain Ricardo Montolivo played the part with extraordinary calmness. Inter may have dominated possession but the Rossoneri were always a threat on the counter.
The 18-year-old has already been termed as a “predestinato”, [a person pre-destined for great things] by his coach and although he couldn’t stamp his authority in the midfield like the previous games, it still didn’t deter his enthusiasm.
With an average age of 25 years, the youthful spine of Locatelli, Donnarumma and Romagnoli, although the latter was absent, are the future of Milan. Milan has risen to third in the table and will continue to do so after rivals Roma lost way to Atalanta. Montella can only hope that his young charges can rise to greater heights as the season progresses.
#4 Positive start for Pioli
The manner in which Pioli celebrated with his players by running onto the pitch after Inter grabbed the equaliser in stoppage time was nothing short of infectious. The 51-year-old is the ninth coach of Inter in the past six years and was appointed after the sacking of Dutchman Frank de Boer.
The Champions League has been elusive for the Nerazzurri for the past 5 years and the Dutchman was initially appointed with that objective in mind. But 14 games into the season have seen another upheaval and another appointment.
For Pioli, this will be the second top job after managing Lazio. Given that he was a central defender in his playing days it was no surprise to see him go into the derby with a 4-5-1 formation. The safety first approach did help Inter retain control in midfield and also helped the deeper midfielders to run past their own forwards from deep to attack the Milan goal.
They did throw caution to the wind after the keeper was sent up for what turned out to be the final corner of the game but in the end, the goal was a deserved reward for their tactics.
#5 All gain no pain
Milan may feel robbed by the late equaliser, but they would be still happy that their unbeaten run hasn’t come to an end. Milan came into the game unbeaten in their last two games and were looking to pick up their third straight victory. And Montella’s boys will no doubt feel hard done by conceding in stoppage time.
But this is not a time for the Rossoneri to be downbeat as there is still has a long way to go and the gains from the match are the temperament which the team showed in face of constant pressure, that is sure to embolden this squad for the future.
Inter, on the other hand, have had their own share of ups and downs. While it is too early to judge Pioli, it will be interesting to see how he handles his tenure. Impatience has been the running theme at Inter for the past few years and whether the privilege of patience is extended to the Italian is to be seen.
However the earning of the morale-boosting point will be lost if Inter do not follow up this with a better result in their next fixture against Fiorentina next weekend.
