Inter 1-0 Milan: First half Lauturo Martinez header gives Nerazzurri Milan derby bragging rights

Inter beat Milan 1-0 in the 235th Derby della Madonnina to move outright second, 13 points behind leaders Napoli.

The Nerazzurri dominated from kick off, but produced few clear cut chances until Lautaro Martinez’s 34th-minute opener.

The Argentinian found space in the box to head home Hakan Calhanoglu’s wicked corner and score his seventh goal in seven games since the World Cup break.

Milan limped to half-time without a shot and having made just one tackle despite the 75-25% possession split.

The introduction of Rafael Leao and Alexis Saelemaekers immediately improved Milan, but also raised the question of why they didn’t start the match?

Clear-cut opportunities were at a premium in the second half.

Romelu Lukaku had the ball in the net 10 minutes from time, but the goal was ruled out for a foul in the build-up.

Martinez thought he’d sealed victory with a second goal, but his neat finish was also ruled out, this time for offside against the Argentinean.

The win takes Inter five points clear of their city rivals who remain in sixth place.

Talking point – What can Milan do?

That was a shocking performance from Milan. Not shocking in the typical over the top analysis sense, but literally surprisingly bad. This was a big derby match that could have seen Milan move ahead of their eternal rivals with a win, but they played with all the intensity of a mid-season money-spinning friendly.

Milan are missing key players through injury, but a majority of their title-winning side from a year ago remain intact.

Stefano Pioli faces a truly difficult task in getting his disjointed champions back on track.

Player of the Match – Nicolo Barella

Barella was the heartbeat for Inter in the derby victory. No player on either side had more touches than the diminutive Italian. When Inter were on top he drove his team forward with incisive passes and strong, determined runs. When Milan had the upper hand, Barella dug in and contributed in defensive phases, too. His personal battle with Sandro Tonali was a highlight of the match, and one that he won handily.

Player ratings

Inter: Onana 6; Skriniar 7, Acerbi 6, Bastoni 7; Darmian 7, Barella 8, Çalhanoglu 7, Mhkitaryan 7, Dimarco 7; Lautaro Martínez 8, Dzeko 6. Subs: Dumfries 6, Brozovic N/A, Gagliardini N/A, Gosens 6, Lukaku 7

Milan: Tatarusanu 8; Kalulu 6, Kjaer 6, Gabbia 5; Calabria 5, Messias 5, Tonali 6, Krunic 6, Theo Hernández 6; Origi 5, Giroud 6. Subs: Leao 6, Thiaw 5, Rebic 5, Saelemaekers 7, Diaz 6,

Match highlights

6’ HUGE TATARUSANU SAVE – Lautaro unleashes a wicked shot, but Ciprian Tatarusanu gets a strong hand out to deflect it out for a corner.

16’ NO PENALTY FOR DZEKO – VAR turns down the appeals to overturn the onfield decision.

32’ INTER PLAY OUT OF DANGER – Milan press aggressively, but are opened up and Lautaro races away. The former Racing forward is brought down and Kalulu is rightly booked.

34’ GOAL INTER – Lautaro Martinez heads home from a wickedly-taken corner.

75′ ONANA FORCED INTO SAVE – Brahim Diaz stands up Bastoni before firing a low shot at goal that Onana has to dive to stop.

83′ LUKAKU HAS IT IN THE NET – The crowd celebrates, but the whistle had blown against the Belgian being overly physical with Malick Thiaw.

90′ LAUTARO DENIED DOUBLE – Lautaro Martinez slips his shot under the sprawling Tatarasanu. The referee initially rules it out for offside, and a VAR check confirms the on-field ruling. No goal.

Key stats

Inter: 5 – Lautaro piled up five shots in the derby win over Milan, providing the vital cutting edge that was missing elsewhere. Inter should have been clear winners, and Lautaro did his best to make that a reality.

Milan: 1 – Milan made one tackle in the opening 45 minutes of a derby match in which they had less than 25% of the ball. It was a shocking lack of intensity from the champions who now look anything but.