STADIO GIUSEPPE MEAZZA (Milan) – Inter might light work of a poor Sampdoria as Stefan de Vrij, Nicolo Barella and Joaquin Correa all scored in a 3-0 thumping of the Blucerchiati in Serie A Matchday 12. The win gave the Nerazzurri their fourth consecutive Serie A win on Saturday night.
Falling between a memorable Champions League night and next week’s much-anticipated clash at Juventus, the home meeting against Sampdoria and club legend Dejan Stankovic, now the Blucerchiati coach, had all the ingredients of a possible banana skin for the hosts.
Inter’s patience was rewarded
Instead, the opening half showed how the recent six-game unbeaten streak seems to have given Inter the patience and composure required to break even the most stubborn defences.
Looking confident since the very early stages, the Nerazzurri calmly waited for their moment to strike, which came when Hakan Calhanoglu delivered his fourth seasonal assist by swinging in a corner that Stefan de Vrij headed home for the hosts.
The advantage served as a further boost for the Biscione, who came close twice before doubling their lead seconds before the break through a rocket from Nicolo Barella, who put down Alessandro Bastoni’s delightful ball before burying it in the back of the net with his right foot.
Why was the Inter Curva Nord empty against Sampdoria?
The second half unfolded in a surreal atmosphere, with Inter’s Curva Nord emptied by the fans to the news of the death of 69-year-old Vittorio Boiocchi, one of their main members, who passed away after being shot during an attack.
The atmosphere had been as normal and lively ahead of the game, though in the opening minutes of the match news of the attack appeared to filter through, seeing the Curva Nord fall silent and having banners removed.
At half-time, the stand started to empty as the fans left the stadium.
Such an odd setting wasn’t a distraction for substitute Correa though, as he came off the bench motivated to again trouble Sampdoria. He picked up the ball deep in his own half, ran as far as the edge of the Sampdoria box and finished.
While the win allows Simone Inzaghi’s Inter to enter Serie A’s top five, they could still be leapfrogged by AS Roma on Monday should the Giallorossi get all three points at Verona.
