Inter Milan made it look easy, creating chances every which way and allowing Parma no room to breathe. Federico Dimarco, Nicolò Barella, and Marcus Thuram were the main protagonists of the show, each with a decisive contribution to the 3-1 victory in Serie A.
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Dimarco broke the deadlock just before halftime with a move that seemed just out of training: precise, cool, and right on time to put the Nerazzurri ahead. Then it was Barella's turn to turn brilliance into a goal. A pinpoint pass from Mkhitaryan landed right where it needed to, and the midfielder only needed one touch to send the ball into the net. To wrap things up, Marcus Thuram showed his razor-sharp instincts, reading the play like few can: poised for Bisseck's header, he tapped it in and sealed the win.
Parma fought, but never threatened
To say Parma were a tough opponent would be putting things very mildly. Yes, they managed to keep the scoreline decent enough until the first-half whistle, but they hardly looked like they were going to give a fight for the goal. Their lone goal deep into the match came almost by accident: the deflection off Matteo Darmian with the keeper having absolutely no chance.
For the rest of the match, Inter didn't allow much. Even when Parma tried to push forward, Yann Sommer had little to do, watching much of the action as a spectator. On the other end, Parma's goalkeeper Suzuki had his hands full, pulling off saves left and right. A shot off the crossbar here, a stroke of luck there - it was damage control at its finest.
The mastermind behind the performance, Simone Inzaghi-who has continued to pull Inter Milan with incredible consistency-did not hold himself back as he showered good words on his team's performance. The coach pointed to the concentration and effort that his players showed.
"The boys were brilliant tonight because Parma is actually a good team, especially away from home, they have only been beaten by Napoli. We knew we needed to put in a good performance and we did that. I'm very happy."
However, he could not mask his disappointment with the conceding of that late goal, which he felt was quite undeserved after such brilliant defense.
"There's a bit of a bitter taste because we conceded a goal, and the team didn't deserve that. We played with full focus for all 94 minutes."
He also made sure to highlight Joaquín Correa, who showed signs of returning to form: "Correa is back to being the player we know he is, and he's doing really well. He's been working hard in training, and he needs to keep that up."
Looking ahead to the Champions League
Now, Inter heads into their crucial trip to Leverkusen on Tuesday for the Champions League with momentum and confidence on their side. This performance — decisive, dominant, and polished — is the exact fuel they'll need to keep pushing forward.
Inzaghi then wrapped it up perfectly: "For three and a half years, we have done a great job of bringing Inter to a level where we can compete in such an important competition.