Inter Milan 1-1 Juventus
The second Serie A Inter Milan vs Juventus matchup of the season didn’t have all that much left at stake for either team. Juve have already wrapped up their eighth consecutive Scudetto, while third-placed Inter have all but secured a Champions League spot.
However, the Derby D’Italia is always a closely contested affair, and it proved to be once again as the two rivals played to a hard-fought draw. Cristiano Ronaldo’s milestone 600th goal cancelled out Radja Nainggolan’s spectacular opener for Inter.
Most Inter Milan vs Juventus predictions likely foresaw that result since neither team had much to play for. But still, the two rivals produced an exciting encounter that was worthy of the hype that surrounds this huge derby between the two Italian giants.
Highlights of the game
Inter Milan started on the front foot at home as Matteo Politano delivered an in-swinging cross into the Juventus penalty area. Juventus’ Leonardo Bonucci was the one who made contact, but his header went wide for a corner.
And on the ensuing corner, Juve were unable to completely clear the ball. Politano’s looping pass made its way to Radja Nainggolan on the edge of the box, and the bruising Belgian hit an absolutely sweet volley which arrowed into the bottom corner. As far as Inter Milan vs Juventus highlights go, this one is obviously right on the top drawer.
But as good as Nainggolan’s strike was, Juventus keeper Wojciech Szczesny will be somewhat disappointed he didn’t do a better job of keeping the ball out after getting an arm on it.
Juventus attempted to hit back in the 10th minute as Giorgio Chiellini had his own long-range effort from the edge of the box. However, his somewhat awkward strike did not trouble Samir Handanovic.
The Nerazzurri nearly doubled their lead minutes later through main man Mauro Icardi. But Szczesny was equal to the Argentine’s attempt as he tipped the ball over.
Inter had an even better chance on the ensuing corner. A good cross found defender Stefan de Vrij, who delivered a strong header which Szczesny once again stopped and gathered before Inter could pounce on the rebound.
The home side created another decent opportunity off a corner. A Chiellini header ricocheted off de Vrij and onto the path of Icardi just on the edge of the six-yard box. His shot was blocked by Blaise Matuidi, though, and Chiellini eventually smuggled it away for another corner.
Cristiano Ronaldo continued to look for an equaliser for Juve, and he nearly got it on the hour mark. He connected on a Joao Cancelo cross, but his shot was blocked and claimed by Handanovic.
The Portuguese superstar wasn’t to be denied in his next chance, though, as he finally drew Juve level. After a clever backheel by Miralem Pjanic set him up, Ronaldo launched a fierce shot at the edge of the box which gave Handanovic no chance.
Inter had one more shot to grab all three points as Ivan Perisic and Mauro Icardi worked a one-two inside the penalty area. But the Croatian’s shot was pushed over the bar by Szczesny to help the champions preserve a draw in the derby.
Key statistics
Ronaldo’s equaliser will go down in history as it was the 600th goal of his club career. He scored a good portion of those goals — 450 to be exact — during his time with Real Madrid. He had 118 at Manchester United and five at Sporting Lisbon.
Ronaldo has now scored 27 goals in his first season for Juventus, 20 coming in the league. He’s now just two goals back of Fabio Quagliarella for the Capocannoniere, the award given to Serie A’s top scorer, with four matches to go.
As for Inter, they’ve extended their current unbeaten run to five games. Curiously, though, they’ve won both away games and drew all three games at home during that stretch. But it should be noted that those three games were against three of the top-six teams: Atalanta, Roma, and Juventus.
What’s next?
Inter will look to extend their unbeaten streak to six games as they visit Udinese next weekend. But Udinese are still just four points from the relegation zone and will be desperate to secure safety for next season.
As for Juventus, the champions have another derby to prepare for next week as they host city rivals Torino for the Derby della Mole. Torino, who will next face AC Milan, are still in the race for a Europa League spot, and SBOBET tips that match to be a very interesting one.
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