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Paolo Tomaselli, sent to Bergamo
Inter advance to Bergamo thanks to the great work of Pio Esposito, who has just entered, for Lautaro: Chivu’s team ends 2025 at the top. The goals of Thuram, De Ketelaere and Scamacca were disallowed for offside
The top of the championship it’s a kind of rock gym, on which Inter climbs with some shivers (Samardzic’s missed goal at the end is sensational), but putting his foot in the right place, with the Pi-La lighting up the path. He is always the leader of the group, Lautarowhich before halfway through the second half plants the Inter flag at the top of a dominated match in a somewhat scholastic way in the first half and then won when Atalanta changed gear to compete. The Argentine’s 30th goal in 2025 It comes from an unthinkable trick by Djimsiti, who misses the pass and serves Esposito: the blue, with the first ball touched, provides an assist with perfect timing for Lautaro, who makes no mistakes from the left wing and responds to Hojlund and Nkunku. Taking into account that “Napoli is the clear favourite”, according to the line indicated by Marotta, in response to Conte. Whose sentences are neither hot nor cold to Chivu: “I don’t care what he says.”
You don’t need to wait long to understand who’s bluffing: on January 11th at San Siro in the first leg of the second leg there’s already Inter-Napoli. But the fact that the Inter construction site, mentioned the day before by Chivu himself, is always open is clear to everyone. The injury to Dumfries, who will return in March, has made Inter a boxer with his right arm tied behind his back. And the coach is trying to redo the sowing on the wing to see if something good grows or if he needs to return to the market: when it comes to changing pace and going cross, Luis Henrique is as shy as a teenager on a first datebut the Brazilian also has deliveries as a tactical winger, to attract the opposition’s pressure and free up the horsepower in Bisseck’s engine who throws himself into spaces, with Barella who in turn rises a lot, playing almost as an attacking midfielder in a sort of 3-4-1-2.
But using two of them (Bisseck and Luis Henrique) to replace one creates some imbalances, as well as a significant energy expenditure compared to the real danger index. In fact, in the first half, Inter were stationed in Atalanta’s half of the pitch, banging into their opponents’ armor and also making little use of the left lane. It is no coincidence that the best ball comes from a throw-in, after an interception by Zielinski who throws Lautaroquick to put the ball on Thuram’s right for an elusive diagonal for Carnesecchi. But Toro’s offside forces you to use the whiteboard on the scoresheet. And the rest of the an anthology of occasions Nerazzurre is made of forced shots (Barella, Calhanoglu) or weak shots (Lautarowho also freed himself well via central routes). So Atalanta, up until then a little too affected, at the end of the first half made it clear that if the attack comes on, it could hurt, even if Scamacca only came close to (heading) a cross from Zalewski, on an action resulting from a ball lost by Thuram in attack.
Atalanta’s aggressiveness increases in tone at the beginning of the second half De Ketelaere had a goal disallowed for offside by Zalewski. On the other hand, Luis Henrique instead tries to dribble the only time he should have shot on goal straight away and gets fooled by Carnesecchi, with Barella shooting wide on the rebound. A strong shock is needed. And the Pio door, instead of an opaque Thuram. The ball for Lautaro, in the stadium where Italy will play the first playoff for the World Cup with Northern Ireland, is the right one to send Lautaro into the goal. And keep running.
December 28, 2025 (changed December 28, 2025 | 11:23 pm)
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