RIYADH: The Supercoppa Italiana, and the bragging rights that go with it, goes to Inter Milan in Riyadh on Wednesday evening.
A crowd of over 51,000 inside the King Fahd International Stadium saw the Coppa Italia holders defeat Serie A champions AC Milan 3–0 to lift the trophy, marking the third time the showpiece final was played in the Kingdom.
This was no mid-season, warm-weather friendly. For starters, the temperature inside the stadium had dropped to 9 °C. But more importantly, no derby match between these two city rivals is ever less than a fierce encounter – and certainly not when the first silverware of the season is on the line.
The teams went into the match with AC Milan second in the Serie A standings on 38 points, nine behind leader Napoli, and Inter fourth on 37, only behind Juventus on goal difference.
Inter started the game on the front foot and earned a free-kick in a promising position after four minutes, only for it to be headed straight over the defensive wall by World Cup winner Lautaro Martínez. But Inter fans didn’t have long to wait for the breakthrough.
In just 10 minutes, Nicolo Barella broke free on the right side of the AC Milan penalty area and passed the ball to Federico DiMarco, whose left-footed finish left Ciprian Tatarusanu with no chance on goal.
The Serie A champions had their best chance of the half on 18 minutes when Portugal international Rafael Leao’s curling shot from a tight angle was turned by Andre Onana for a corner.
Inter took full advantage of the opportunity three minutes later. Edin Dzeko received the ball from Alessandro Bastoni inside the Milan penalty box before showing superb skill to cut to his right foot and slide the ball past Tatarusanu. It was already 2–0 and the Rossoneri were in danger of serious embarrassment.
Inter were relentless and on the half-hour, DiMarco scored his second after taking advantage of another sloppy defensive mistake, but his fierce, left-footed shot was pushed away by Tatarusanu.
Martínez had a chance to finish the match in first-half stoppage time but mis-controlled the ball when he was put on goal and Inter had to be content with a two-goal lead at the break.
AC Milan were clearly on the mend during the early stages of the second half and Leão had a golden chance to halve the deficit, but shot wide after finding himself inside the Inter penalty area. Ismail Benesar also had a sight of goal but shot straight at Onana.
On 65 minutes, Milan coach Stefano Pioli brought on Charles de Ketelaire, Divock Origi and Pierre Kalulu for Brahim Diaz, Junior Messias and Simon Kjaer as they looked to consolidate their second-half dominance and close the gap. Were staying
Milan continued to press, but clear chances were hard to come by, with Leão in particular resorting to several long-range shots, which were either blocked by the Inter defenders or easily collected by Onana.
With 20 minutes left, coach Simone Inzaghi replaced Barela and Dzeko with Roberto Gagliardini and Joaquin Correa in an attempt to inject some more life into the Inter attack, but the match continued to follow the same script, with Milan getting the better of the match. Enjoyed possession, but rarely managed. Translate this into clear target opportunities.
Then, on 77 minutes, Martínez redeemed himself for a poor individual performance with a superb finish with the outside of his right foot to give Inter a 3–0 lead.
The Argentina striker celebrated by taking off his shirt in front of jubilant Inter fans behind goal, which resulted in barely a booking.
“Ole, ole, ole, inter, inter,” sang those in the crowd in black and blue. There was no way back for Milan and the rest of the match was played against a background of celebration by Inter supporters.
It was Inter’s seventh Italian Super Cup win, equaling the number claimed by their defeated opponents. Juventus, with nine wins, remains the competition’s record title holder.
As the lights dimmed inside the stadium, Inter players joined their fans in jubilant celebration, a sure sign, if any were needed, of how much this trophy means to them.