‘Out Of Breath’ – Injury-Hit Inter Milan Stretched To Their Limits In 1-1 Serie A Draw Vs Napoli | OneFootball

Inter Milan were “our of breath” after being stretched to their limits in yesterday evening’s 1-1 Serie A draw with Napoli.

This is the view in today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews.

Inter Milan will have known what to expect from yesterday’s Serie A match against Napoli.

Playing at the Stadio Diego Maradona, against a team hungry to bounce back from last weekend’s loss to Como, the Nerazzurri were always going to face a trial by fire.

Then, there was the fact that Inter have had a considerably busier schedule than Napoli throughout the season. The fixture list was always likely to be evident at some point.

And Inter also headed into the match with an injury crisis on the flanks. Matteo Darmian, Carlos Augusto, and Nicola Zalewski were all out prior to yesterday’s match.

That was naturally going to make it all the more difficult for Inter to compete in the intense, tiring physical battle on the flanks. The team were facing exhaustion.

Inter Milan Stretched To Limits In 1-1 Serie A Draw Vs Napoli

The first half of yesterday’s match against Napoli was as tough and frenetic as expected for Inter. But it also left the team feeling pleased, as they went in at halftime 1-0 up courtesy of a Federico Dimarco free kick.

But the second half was a different story for the Nerazzurri.

MONZA, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 15: Federico Dimarco of FC Internazionale in action during the Serie A match between AC Monza and FC Internazionale at U-Power Stadium on September 15, 2024 in Monza, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Only a few minutes passed before Inter lost both Dimarco and Hakan Calhanoglu to injury.

Evidently the pace and physicality of that first half – and of all Inter’s recent matches – had exacted a cost on the squad.

And Napoli were ready to take full advantage of this physical toll on Inter.

The Partenopei pressed high, forcing Inter deep into their own half. They moved the ball quickly, and took advantage of the wide areas to make the pitch as big as possible.

For much of the second half, Napoli really made Inter suffer.

But the Nerazzurri just about held on. While they offered nothing in the final third, they defended their own penalty area close to perfectly.

However, late in the match Napoli finally broke through. A gap appeared for Partenopei midfielder Stanislav Lobotoka to run through.

The Slovenian found substitute Phillip Billing. The former Huddersfield Town and Bournemouth midfielder first forced a save out of Josep Martinez, and then forced the ball across the line from the rebound.

After that, Inter were at least able to hold on to salvage a point. That ensured that they stayed top of the table, and could be precious come the end of the season.

But the wind was out of the Nerazzurri’s sails. It was evident that the match had taken everything out of them.