Turin-Inter 2-2
GOALS: 23′ pt Thuram; 16′ st Bisseck, 25′ st Simeone, 34′ st Vlasic (pen).
TURIN (3-4-1-2): Paleari 6.5; Coco 5.5 (9′ st Marianucci 6), Ismajli 6, Ebosse 5.5; Lazaro 5.5 (8′ st Njie 6), Ilkhan 6.5, Gineitis 5.5 (22′ st Casadei 6), Obrador 6; Vlasic 7; Simeone 7 (45′ st Tameze sv), Adams 5.5 (21′ st Zapata 6.5). On the bench: Israel, Siviero, Maripan, Biraghi, Ilic, Prati, Kulenovic. Coach: D’Aversa 6.5.
INTER (3-5-2): Sommer 6; Bisseck 7 (42′ st Frattesi sv), Akanji 6, Carlos Augusto 5; Darmian 6 (35′ st Diouf sv), Barella 5.5, Zielinski 5.5, Sucic 6.5 (35′ st Mkhitaryan sv), Dimarco 7 (35′ st Dumfries sv); Thuram 7, Bonny 5.5 (16′ st Esposito 5.5). On the bench: Chivu 5.5. Coach: Di Gennaro, Josep Martinez, Bastoni, De Vrij, Acerbi, Cocchi, Mosconi, Calhanoglu, Lautaro.
REFEREE: Mariani from Aprilia 6.5.
NOTES: clear afternoon; playing field in fair condition. Booked: D’Aversa, Diouf, Ebosse, Barella. Angles: 5-5. Recovery: 1′; 6′.
At the Olimpico Grande Torino, Chivu’s Inter slowed down their journey towards mathematically winning the scudetto number twenty-one. The final 2-2 is the result of Torino’s final twenty minutes of fire and the unexpected blackout of the Nerazzurri, who led by two goals until the 70th minute. Simeone and Vlasic (on a penalty) made up for Thuram and Bisseck’s goals. Both teams played a two-faced match. An initially dull Toro was transformed in the second part of the second half, also thanks to D’Aversa’s substitutions; Inter, on the other hand, lost clarity after having had total control of operations for a time and a half. At the start, Inter lost a couple of bloody balls on the edge of their penalty area, but the Granata were guilty of cynicism. In the 8th minute Coco had the best chance who, after Barella’s error on the way out, devoured the advantage, kicking high from a good position. A minute earlier, the Nerazzurri had come close to scoring with Akanji’s header just over the top. After a gore from Bisseck and a shot from Bonny, both saved by Paleari, Inter found the 1-0 goal in the 23rd minute: Dimarco crossed from the left for Thuram who headed higher than anyone else and secured the result.
The rest of the first half sees Chivu’s boys manage the ball without forcing the play, while Torino runs mostly empty, struggling to react. At the start of the second half, Paleari kept his teammates afloat, miraculously neutralizing Dimarco’s close-range attempt: a few minutes later, however, Thuram didn’t take advantage of the opportunity on the restart. The 2-0 goal, however, was only a matter of minutes and arrived in the 61st minute from a corner: second assist of the evening for Dimarco and winning header from Bisseck. The match seems definitively frozen, but Inter pulls the plug ahead of time and suffers a sensational comeback from Torino. In the 70th minute Simeone made it 2-1, beating Sommer on the way out with the pass. Two minutes later, the Argentine again comes close to scoring a double in the split. In the 78th minute here is the episode that leads to the equalizer: the VAR recalls Mariani for a handball by Carlos Auusto on a header in the area by Zapata. Aprilia’s whistle concedes the penalty and Vlasic scores the 2-2, kicking under the top corner. In the final neither of the two teams manages to find the spark for victory. Chivu’s changes were too late. Despite this result, the music does not change: next Sunday at San Siro Inter will still have the chance to celebrate the scudetto (mathematical title in case of victory). Today’s draw, finally, certifies Torino’s salvation.