Internazionale v Sassuolo Live Commentary & Result, 13/05/2023, Serie A

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	NAP Napoli	38	28	6	4	77	28	+49	90	W D W L W
2	LAZ Lazio	38	22	8	8	60	30	+30	74	W W W D L
3	INT Internazionale	38	23	3	12	71	42	+29	72	W W L W W
4	MIL Milan	38	20	10	8	64	43	+21	70	W W W L W
5	ATA Atalanta	38	19	7	12	66	48	+18	64	W L W L L
6	ROM Roma	38	18	9	11	50	38	+12	63	W L D D L
7	JUV Juventus	38	22	6	10	56	33	+23	62	W L L W W
8	FIO Fiorentina	38	15	11	12	53	43	+10	56	W W D W L
9	BOL Bologna	38	14	12	12	53	49	+4	54	W D W D D
10	TOR Torino	38	14	11	13	42	41	+1	53	L W D W D
11	MON Monza	38	14	10	14	48	52	-4	52	L L W W D
12	UDI Udinese	38	11	13	14	47	48	-1	46	L L L L W
13	SAS Sassuolo	38	12	9	17	47	61	-14	45	L D L L D
14	EMP Empoli	38	10	13	15	37	49	-12	43	L D W D W
15	SAL Salernitana	38	9	15	14	48	62	-14	42	L W D W L
16	LEC Lecce	38	8	12	18	33	46	-13	36	L W D D L
17	SPE Spezia	38	6	13	19	31	62	-31	31	L L D W L
18	VER Hellas Verona	38	7	10	21	31	59	-28	31	L D L L W
19	CRE Cremonese	38	5	12	21	36	69	-33	27	W L L L W
20	SAM Sampdoria	38	3	10	25	24	71	-47	19	L D L D L

That's all for today, goodbye!

Inter's fifth successive Serie A win extends their lead over fifth-placed Milan to five points after their city rivals lost to Spezia earlier this weekend. They travel to league winners Napoli in their next domestic outing. However, their focus will now turn to the Champions League semi-final second leg against Milan. As for Sassuolo, they are without a win in their last three games. Next up, they are at home against Monza.

Lukaku netted a brace to help Inter on their way to a 4-2 win over Sassuolo. Alessio Dionisi's men were the first team to have the ball in the net when Berardi poked in Lauriente's cross, but VAR disallowed the goal with the Frenchman moving into an offside position. Correa then curled a shot into the bottom corner moments later after getting onto the end of a pass from Dimarco, but the left-back was also punished for being offside. Henrique and Correa missed free headers at either end before Lukaku crashed in the opener. The striker received a pass from D'Ambrosio, protecting the ball from Ruan and powering his strike into the top corner. Ruan then had a horrible few minutes to help Inter to a three-goal lead. He first sent Bellanova's cross from the right into the top corner to score an own goal before deflecting Martinez's powerful shot from the edge of the box past Consigli and into the net. However, the away side found a way back into the game. Berardi's cross from the right found Henrique, who powered his header into the net to make it 3-1. Frattesi then got on the end of Rogerio's cross to reduce the deficit to one, but the game was put beyond them after being caught on the break. Brozovic rushed through the middle of the pitch before feeding a pass into the feet of Lukaku, with the forward powering a low effort across the goal and into the bottom corner.

90' + 4' FULL-TIME: INTER 4-2 SASSUOLO

90' + 3' Berardi wastes a chance to score for Sassuolo. He has a free-kick on the byline on the right but sends the ball straight out for a goal-kick.

90' + 1' Sassuolo have conceded 14 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half, only Sampdoria (18) and Empoli (17) have conceded more in Serie A this season. They have been chasing their game and were caught on the break.

R. Lukaku

Goal

89' GOALLLL! LUKAKU WITH A BRACE! 4-2 INTER! That is a vital goal for Inter as Sassuolo were putting on the pressure. Brozovic slides a throughball down the left side of the box, with Lukaku racing onto the end of it. He has time to pick his spot and drives his effort across the goal and into the bottom corner from a narrow-angle.

M. Brozović

Assist

89' Brozovic makes a brilliant run through the middle of the pitch before sliding a pass into the path of Lukaku. It is a bit wide of the striker but Lukaku is still in space and executes his accurate strike perfectly.

88' Frattesi gets on the end of Berardi's inswinging corner, but he cannot get away from a bundle of players and pokes his effort well wide of the target.

87' Sassuolo have had most of the ball for the last couple of minutes. They are passing it around Inter's defensive third patiently waiting for an opening.

85' Berardi's curling free-kick is cleared behind for a corner. Gagliardini clears away the following set-piece, with Rogerio thundering an ambitious effort over from distance.

M. Brozović

Yellow Card

84' The referee shows a yellow card to Brozovic after the Croatia international makes a late slide tackle on Berardi. The free-kick is in a crossing position.

83' Rogerio floats another cross into the middle, this time towards Pinamonti, but the striker is nudged out of the way of the ball into the box. Goal-kick to Inter.

81' Inter have not drawn any of their last 21 Serie A home games (winning 16, losing five); the last home draw in Serie A was in March 2022: 1-1, against Fiorentina. They will be hoping that continues and Sassuolo do not find an equaliser.

M. Darmian

R. Bellanova

79' Inter are looking to slow down the game and add some experience to their defence. Darmian replaces Bellanova.

79' The ball bounces around the Inter box before coming out to Bajrami who blasts his attempt well over the bar.

Rogério

Assist

77' Rogerio's cross from the left is excellent and finds the run of Frattesi, who rushes away from his marker and powers his header past Handanovic.

D. Frattesi

Goal

77' GOALLLL! SASSUOLO SCORE AGAIN! 3-2! Inter concede another goal from a cross. Frattesi rushes into the middle of the box and away from Asllani to get on the end of Rogério's cross before planting his header into the bottom corner.

N. Zortea

J. Toljan

76' Sassuolo make another alteration. Zortea replaces Toljan.

K. Thorstvedt

Matheus Henrique

76' Henrique missed a header and scored a header and is now being replaced. Thorstvedt is on.

A. Bastoni

S. de Vrij

73' De Vrij is on a yellow card and is now coming off. Bastoni replaces him at centre-back.

72' WIDE! Gosens gets his shot all wrong. There is a switch of play from right to left with Gosens unmarked in the middle of the box, but his volley goes well wide of the target. He has his head in his hands before showing appreciation for the cross.

S. de Vrij

Yellow Card

70' De Vrij receives Inter's first yellow card after a foul on Pinamonti.

70' Lukaku keeps the ball away from a defender before curling a pass down the right flank to Gagliardini. He looks for Acerbi in the middle, who finds himself in an unusual position but the defender cannot get a shot away.

68' Sassuolo have conceded at least two goals in each of their last four Serie A away matches; the Neroverdi have never conceded at least two goals in five away matches in a row in their Serie A history. They were three goals behind but Henrique's header has given them a chance to get back into the game with 22 minutes left to play.

Matheus Henrique

Yellow Card

66' Henrique has a goal to his name and now a yellow card for a foul on Martinez.

G. Ferrari

Ruan

64' Ruan has scored an own goal, as well as have the last touch on the ball before Martinez's shot found the back of the net and is now coming off. Ferrari takes his place.

D. Berardi

Assist

63' Berardi has been Sassuolo's best player and would have scored the opener if VAR was not there to check for offside. This time he gets an assist to his name with a wonderfully weighted cross to Henrique.

Matheus Henrique

Goal

63' GOALLLL! SASSUOLO GET ONE BACK! 3-1! Berardi has possession on the right of the box before curling a cross towards Henrique with his left boot. The midfielder escapes his marker and powers a header into the bottom corner.

R. Gosens

F. Dimarco

61' Dimarco also started the first leg of the Champions League semi-final and is now on his way off. Gosens is on.

K. Asllani

H. Mkhitaryan

61' Inter are comfortable in the game and are now making changes with the Champions League in their mind. Mkhitaryan, one of three players to keep their place from the last game, is replaced in the midfield by Asllani.

H. Mkhitaryan

Assist

59' Mkhitaryan gets another assist to his name after finding Martinez. The striker did most of the work, carrying the ball into the middle of the pitch before striking his defected effort past the goalkeeper.

L. Martínez

Goal

58' GOALLLL! MARTINEZ SCORES! 3-0 INTER! What an impact of the bench for Martinez but another moment to forget for Ruan. The striker drives inside from the right before powering a low cross goal-bound. However, it deflects off Ruan on the way through and loops over Consigli. That's his 20th Serie A goal of the season, more than any other Inter player.

A. Pinamonti

G. Defrel

57' Substitution for Sassuolo. Defrel is replaced by Pinamonti.

N. Bajrami

A. Laurienté

57' Sassuolo make two changes. Lauriente started instead of Bajrami on the left wing but is now being replaced by the 24-year-old.

56' Inter have scored 11 goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half, only Atalanta (16) have scored more in the Serie A this season.

Ruan

Own Goal

55' OWN GOAL! 2-0 INTER! What a nightmare for Ruan. Bellanova gets on the end of a corner that is cleared out of the Sassuolo box and dribbles past Lauriente before curling an inviting cross into the box. Ruan gets across and sticks a foot in the way to clear, but it loops into the top corner.

53' Lukaku drifts out to the right wing and sends a curling cross into the box towards Martinez. It goes past the striker but Dimarco recovers it, sending a pass to Mkhitaryan. He tries to chip the ball across the box, but it goes straight to the goalkeeper.

51' Lauriente has possession on the left flank and puts a low cross into the box towards Defrel. Acerbi is there but makes a mess of the clearance, with the centre-back lucky that the ball rolls under him and straight to Handanovic.

50' Mkhitaryan utilises the strength of Lukaku and plays the ball into the feet of the striker, who holds off a defender inside the box. Lukaku tries to feed a pass back to Mkhitaryan but Toljan gets back to poke it away.

48' Inter fans will be happy to see Lukaku and Martinez playing together. Since the start of April, no players have been involved in more Serie A goals than Inter duo Lukaku (three goals, four assists) and Martinez (five goals, two assists).

46' The home side get the ball rolling again. They have a lead to protect.

L. Martínez

J. Correa

46' Inter make the first change of the game. It comes in the attack with Martinez replacing Correa.

CHANCE! Sassuolo had a chance to score the opener. Berardi is on the right and plays a pass into the box with Frattesi rushing forward, but the midfielder's attempt is pushed away by Handanovic before being collected on the second attempt with Lauriente running in.

Inter conceded a couple of good chances but defended well for most of the first 45 minutes and did well to play to Lukaku's strengths. They are looking to play passes into the feet of the striker straight out of the defence, with the forward strong enough to hold off defenders and bring others into play or shoot himself. As for Sassuolo, they will be content with their display. They have countered well through Berardi and have chances to score on transition but have not been clinical enough in the attack.

Lukaku struck his seventh Serie A goal of the season to give Inter the lead at the break. Sassuolo thought they had taken an early lead when Berardi rushed in at the far post to poke in Lauriente's cross from left to right, but VAR intervened to rule the goal out for offside against the assister. In a manic few minutes, Correa got on the end of a cushioned pass to curl his effort into the bottom corner. However, as soon as the ball crossed the line the assistant referee put his flag up to disallow the goal for offside. Henrique and Correa missed free headers at either end before Lukaku broke the deadlock. The former Everton forward shielded possession from Ruan before rolling the defender and crashing his strike into the top corner from outside the box.

45' + 2' HALF-TIME: INTER 1-0 SASSUOLO

45' + 1' Lukaku uses his physical strength to push away the challenge of Ruan, this time inside the box but he lofts his attempt over the bar.

44' Inter have avoided defeat in their last 14 matches when scoring the opening goal in Serie A dating back to 1st October 2022 against Roma (L1-2).

Ruan

Yellow Card

42' Ruan is shown the first yellow card of the game after complaining to the referee.

D. D'Ambrosio

Assist

41' The pass from D'Ambrosio is simple, but it makes the most of Lukaku's physicality. Playing the ball straight to his feet, it allows the striker to control it with ease before turning past the defender. Lukaku then smashes his shot past Consigli.

R. Lukaku

Goal

41' GOALLLL! LUKAKU SCORES! 1-0 INTER! What a strike from Lukaku. He receives a pass from D'Ambrosio and holds off Ruan, who tries to get the ball. The striker then twists to his left outside the box before lashing a shot into the top corner.

39' Lukaku has been quiet for the last 20 minutes but has a chance to break the deadlock. The striker receives the ball from Dimarco and drives a low shot across the goal from the edge of the box, but it goes just wide.

38' Rogerio switches the ball from right to left to Berardi, with the winger taking one touch before seeing his cross get blocked by Acerbi. Lukaku clears the following corner.

36' OVER! Brozovic unleashes Mkhitaryan, with the former Manchester United man driving forward before laying a pass down the left flank to Dimarco. He lofts a cross into the box to Correa, but the unmarked striker heads his effort just over the bar.

34' Inter's Dimarco has been involved in six goals (four goals, two assists) in Serie A this season: only in 2020/21, has the defender been involved in more goals in a single Serie A campaign (eight). He could have an assist earlier in the game when playing the ball into the path of Correa to score, but the Italy international was in an offside position.

32' Mkhitaryan looks to switch the play from left to right, but the referee gets in the way and the game is stopped. The Inter players are not happy as they feel they were building a promising attack.

31' A moment to forget for Lauriente, with the winger controlling Rogerio's throw-in straight off the pitch without being put under pressure from an Inter player.

G. Defrel

Yellow Card

30' The first yellow card of the game goes to Defrel after he blocks the path of Mkhitaryan on the halfway line after the Inter man had flicked a pass to the right.

28' Berardi sends a fast pass into the feet of Defrel, running off the ball to his right and into the box. However, the return throughball to the winger is poor, allowing Acerbi to intercept.

26' Rogerio finds Lauriente with a short pass and makes a run down the left flank. Lauriente ignores his run and moves inside before looking for Defrel with a pass into the box, but there are too many Inter defenders there and the striker is crowded out.

24' Rogerio bursts forward from left-back to get to the byline and onto the end of a smart pass from Lauriente. However, he slips when trying to keep the ball on the pitch with Lukaku putting him under pressure and Inter have possession back.

21' Fantastic defending from Dimarco. Frattesi has possession on the right and tries to dribble past the defender, but Dimarco matches his run and blocks the ball. It then rebounds off Frattesi and out for a goal-kick.

19' WIDE! What a chance for Henrique! Berardi has possession on the right flank, cutting inside with the ball before curling a cross into the box. Henrique is free in the middle but heads his effort well wide of the target.

17' Inter have won just one of their last seven home games (drawing four, losing two) against Sassuolo in Serie A, winning 2-1 in April 2021.

15' OFFSIDE! Inter have the ball in the back of the net but it will not count. Dimarco gets on the end of a switch from right to left and cushions it down to Correa. The Argentine runs into the box to get on the end of it before curling his attempt into the bottom corner, with Consigli failing to keep it out. However, the flag goes up against Dimarco.

13' NO GOAL! The game remains goalless after a VAR check. Lauriente was in an offside position when receiving the ball. What an escape for the Inter defence, who did not track his run. The decision was marginal.

11' BERARDI SCORES BUT THERE IS A VAR CHECK! What a start for Sassuolo. Lauriente has possession on the left side of the box and curls a right-footed cross towards the far post. Berardi rushes away from his marker and slides the ball in from close range. However, there is a VAR check for offside.

9' Berardi receives possession on the right and cuts onto his left foot past Mkhitaryan before looking to the top corner from a distance. However, it is blocked.

8' Berardi makes the most of a loose ball in Inter's defensive third and skips onto it before lashing a low cross through the legs of Acerbi and across the box. However, it is too far ahead of Lauriente and it goes out for a goal-kick.

6' Lukaku has been heavily involved in the opening exchanges of the game. Inter know that he is a physical presence in the attack and are trying to find him every time they have possession.

5' Inter have the first shot of the game. Correa turns towards the Sassuolo goal and drives forward with possession before laying a throughball into the path of Lukaku. The striker is outside the box and looks to strike his effort low, but his attempt is blocked.

3' Berardi rushes down the right side of the box and pokes the ball away from Handanovic but out for a goal-kick. He goes down and believes that he was tripped by the goalkeeper but nothing is given.

3' Frattesi goes down holding his foot inside the Sassuolo half after a late tackle from Gagliardini. The Inter midfielder was too keen to win the ball but comes away without a yellow card.

1' Sassuolo get this Serie A clash under way. Defrel with the first kick.

After four wins in a row, Sassuolo have won only one of their last eight Serie A matches against Inter (drawing two, losing five), winning 2-0 in February 2022.

Sassuolo make one alteration to the side that drew with Bologna in Serie A. Lauriente starts on the left wing instead of Bajrami, with the Albania International dropping onto the bench.

Inter are looking to rest players for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Milan and have made eight changes to the team that won the first leg in their last outing. Handanovic replaces Onana in the goalkeeping position, with De Vri and D’Ambrosio starting instead of Bastoni and Darmian at centre-back. Brozovic and Gagliardini replace Calhanoglu and Barella in the midfield. Dumfries is replaced on the right flank by Bellanova, with Simone Inzaghi changing both of the strikers. Lukaku and Correa are in the attack, coming in for Martinez and Dzeko.

SASSUOLO SUBS: Gianluca Pegolo, Alessandro Russo, Riccardo Marchizza, Abdou Harroui, Andrea Pinamonti, Agustin Alvarez Martínez, Gian Marco Ferrari, Pedro Obiang, Emil Ceide, Mert Muldur, Filippo Romagna, Nedim Bajrami, Nadir Zortea, Kristian Thorstvedt.

SASSUOLO (4-3-3): Andrea Consigli; Jeremy Toljan, Martin Erlic, Ruan, Rogerio; Davide Frattesi, Maxime Lopez, Matheus Henrique; Domenico Berardi, Gregoire Defrel, Armand Lauriente.

INTER SUBS: Alex Cordaz, Andre Onana, Denzel Dumfries, Robin Gosens, Edin Dzeko, Lautaro Martinez, Kristjan Asllani, Hakan Calhanoglu, Nicolo Barella, Matteo Darmian, Mattia Zanotti, Alessandro Bastoni.

INTER (3-5-2): Samir Handanovic; Danilo D’Ambrosio, Stefan de Vrij, Stefan de Vrij; Raoul Bellanova, Roberto Gagliardini, Marcelo Brozovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Federico Dimarco; Romelu Lukaku, Joaquin Correa.

Sassuolo won their last game of February and all three in March to string together four successive victories but have struggled recently, winning just two of their previous seven league matches. Sitting in 14th place, they are 14 points above the relegation zone and 12 points away from the top six, meaning they have little to play for in their last four fixtures. However, they still have a chance of finishing in the top-half and are just two points behind 10th-placed Bologna. The Neroverdi have lost their last three games on the road, winning just four times in 16 matches away from home this season.

Inter have turned their form around and will be confident of securing another win after success in the Champions League during the week. They have one foot in the final after a 2-0 win over rivals Milan, with Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan scoring early in the tie. Looking to secure a place in the top four of the Serie A, their recent results couldn’t have come at a better time. The Nerazzurri were winless in five after losing to Monza midway through April, but four successive league wins have seen them surge into fourth, two points above Milan.

Hello and welcome to the live commentary for the Serie A clash between Inter and Sassuolo.

Internazionale v Sassuolo Live Commentary, 13/05/2023

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