BEVERLY HILLS, May 02, (THEWILL) – After putting in the hard work to create the lead they enjoyed in the Serie A, and ensuring they beat Simy Nwankwo’s Crotone on Saturday, Inter Milan, the league leaders did not need to kick a ball again on Sunday to be confirmed as Serie A champions. All they needed was for rivals Atalanta to fail to get three points for the title challenge to be over.
Therefore, when the second-placed free-scoring side drew 1-1 at Sassuolo on Sunday, I Nerazzurri claimed the Scudetto. It is their first domestic league trophy since their remarkable 2009/2010 treble triumph with Jose Mourinho in charge at the San Siro.
This season, Antonio Conte, who returned to Serie A to take the reins, has led his side’s charge to the top since the turn of the year. They moved 13 points ahead of early pace-setters Milan and never showed any weak links to lose momentum.
Sassuolo were not expected to trouble Atalanta too much and the second-placed side opened scoring through Robin Gosens two minutes after the half hour mark. But, because their goalkeeper, Pierluigi Gollini, had earlier been sent off, they had to play the rest of the match with a numerical disadvantage.
It did not help when Sassuolo’s Domenico Berardi levelled seven minutes after the interval. The penalty decision that could have changed the tenor of the game and kept the title from Inter temporarily was lost when Luis Muriel poor penalty attempt was saved by Andrea Consigli, in the Sassuolo goal, in his man of the match performance.
Conte’s success with Inter brings Juventus’ nine consecutive title runs to an end, denying them of a record tenth. This will be the 19th for the Nerazzurri’s, which takes them above Milan to second place in the title number stats behind Juve with 36 titles.
Clearly out of the title contention, Juve’s focus in the closing weeks of this season switched to simply qualifying for the Champions League, as they headed into Sunday’s game at Udinese outside the top four. The unfortunate result of Napoli’s draw against Cagliari earlier today meant that with Juve’s triumph Udinese, Napoli drop out of the top four with Juve jumping to third above Milan.
Their chairman, Andrea Agnelli, congratulated Inter on their Serie A triumph but promised his club would make every effort to win back the Scudetto in the coming season. Agnelli posted his congrats on Twitter, saying: “For ten years in a row we have won a trophy … not bad, but the best will always be the next!”
Directing part of the message to Inter chairman Steven Zhang, Agnelli added: “Well done Steven! Happy for you and proud of being your loyal opponent on the pitch and friend off the pitch. We’ll be back…”
Fabio Paratici, Juve’s sporting director, also joined by mixing praise for the triumphant Inter with reflection on what the Bianconeri achieved in past seasons of Serie A.
Paratici said: “I congratulate the club and Conte. We know that behind every success there is passion and sacrifice.
“We know how much effort we have given to win and be top of the class for 2,382 days. We have accomplished a historic feat, unique in Italian football and, probably, also in world football. Congratulations to Inter for a well-deserved Scudetto.”
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
