April 04, (THEWILL) – Hakan Calhanoglu’s first-half penalty gave Inter a 1-0 victory against Juventus in the Derby d’Italia, giving them a new lease of life in their effort to defend their Serie A title.
In the eighth minute, Juventus almost had the ball in the net due to fortunate circumstances. The cross from Juan Cuadrado looped into the air, and Samir Handanovic was unable to grab it. From point-blank range, Giorgio Chiellini poked the ball goalward, but his effort ricocheted off the crossbar.
For the hosts, Dusan Vlahovic and Alvaro Morata were connecting at will, and their combination almost paid off in the 15th minute. The former arrowed a wonderful floating cross towards the far post, but the angle was too tight for the Spaniard, and his header went wide.
In the first half, Juve had the upper hand – Morata’s shot from a Cuadrado pull-back was saved by Milan Skriniar – but it was Inter, who went into the break with the lead in a controversial way.
When Denzel Dumfries went down in the area, their appeals for a penalty were originally ignored. However, referee, Massimiliano Irrati, was encouraged to see the pitchside monitor. To the chagrin of the Juve players, he noticed an infringement by Morata and pointed to the spot.
Wojciech Szczesny denied Hakan Calhanoglu, but the Nerazzurri bundled the ball over the goalline from the rebound. Play was initially stopped due to an Inter midfielder’s foul, but after Matthijs de Ligt’s encroachment, the Turkish international was ordered to retake his penalty. With his second chance, he made no mistake, blasting into the bottom corner from 12 yards.
Juve came out of the halftime break with a new lease on life. Paulo Dybala linked up well with Alvaro Morata and Denis Zakaria on the outskirts of the penalty area, but the Argentine could not take the ball in his stride after weaving his way through the Inter danger zone.
Vlahovic then made a stunning spin on the outside of the penalty box to leave Skriniar behind, though the Serbian could only nudge his shot beyond the post.
Massimiliano Allegri’s team continued to press forward, and when Zakaria broke forward from midfield, they were almost rewarded. The midfielder went for goal, but Handanovic was there to push his shot agonisingly wide of the post.
Late in the game, Dybala attempted a long-range shot at Handanovic, but Inter held firm to secure a crucial three points.
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.
