Inter Milan narrowly defeat Verona to stay in the title chase behind Napoli

Inter Milan kept themselves firmly in contention with Napoli at the top of Serie A (SA), as Kristjan Asllani’s early penalty proved decisive in their victory over Hellas Verona. This win marked the Nerazzurri’s eighth consecutive home league triumph against their opponents.

Having witnessed Napoli extend their lead to six points earlier in the day, Inter were aware that a strong performance was imperative against the struggling Verona. As anticipated in the lead-up to the match, Simone Inzaghi’s team came out strong, and they were quickly awarded a chance to take the lead when Nicolas Valentini was penalised for handball following a VAR review.

Asllani stepped up to take the penalty, sending Lorenzo Montipo the wrong way to net his first Serie A goal of the season.

Inspired by their early advantage, Inter looked to broaden their lead soon after, with Nicola Zalewski’s long-range strike being expertly saved by Montipo.

As the first half wore on, the visitors began to find their feet, restricting the Nerazzurri to only a few half-chances, with Marko Arnautovic missing two headers from within the box.

At the beginning of the second half, Inzaghi’s side maintained possession, but with Marcus Thuram on the bench and Lautaro Martinez sidelined due to injury, their inability to convert chances became apparent.

Aiming to avoid a third consecutive loss for the first time since December, Verona sensed an opportunity as the match approached the final half-hour. Ondrej Duda and Tomas Suslov both came close with efforts that just missed the target.

With an eye on their upcoming Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona, the hosts looked to close out the match firmly.

Despite Verona’s efforts, they couldn’t create a clear chance as Inter’s defence held strong, maintaining their incredible unbeaten home record against the Gialloblu in league matches, which now stretches to 35 encounters (23 wins, 11 draws).

Verona will be eager to turn things around against Lecce next weekend after six matches in Serie A without a win (3 draws and 3 losses).

For detailed match statistics, click here