Inter secured a fifth straight Serie A title after Diego Milito scored the only goal in a 1-0 win at Siena on Sunday as AS Roma finished second, two points behind, despite their 2-0 win at Chievo.
It was Inter’s 18th scudetto crown and keeps Jose Mourinho’s team on course for a historic treble, having already won the Italian Cup and with the Champions League final against Bayern Munich to come in Madrid on May 22.
Roma had the chance to be champions but they had to win and hope Inter didn’t.
PHOTO: AFP
They briefly dreamed of lifting the title when they opened a 2-0 lead by half-time at Chievo, but Milito’s 57th-minute strike in Siena settled Inter’s nerves.
“This is an incredible joy, a repayment of all the hard work over the year,” match-winner Milito said. “From tomorrow we will think about that great Champions Lague final.”
Inter captain Javier Zanetti insisted his team were worthy winners.
“At the end the strongest team won but congratulations to Roma for a fine season,” he said. “Now we need to think about another final but for the moment we’ll celebrate this fifth [straight] title which we deserve.”
Siena gave signs from the start that they weren’t going to lie down as Albin Ekdal profitted from space in the Inter defense left by the prone Marco Materazzi, but under pressure from Maicon he slipped his shot wide with the outside of his right foot.
Inter were soon in the ascendancy and first Mario Balotelli and then Milito shot just wide of the far post from the left.
Siena goalkeeper Gianluca Curci then made a miraculous save from Milito’s header from four meters out.
Meanwhile, in Verona, Roma captain Francesco Totti was wasting a glut of chances.
He hit the outside of the post with a fierce right foot shot and then had a double opportunity, but goalkeeper Lorenzo Squizzi kicked away his left foot shot, while his effort with the right from the follow-up was cleared off the line.
An inviting cross from Rodrigo Taddei then flashed across the six-meter box, but neither Mirko Vucinic nor Totti could get a touch, the ball even passing between Totti’s legs.
Back in Siena, center-back Walter Samuel’s firm header was punched clear by Curci with Milito loitering.
After Inter keeper Julio Cesar saved a rasping Massimo Maccarone effort, Balotelli hit the bar with an acrobatic volley from Maicon’s cross.
However, as the half wore to a close, Roma took a decisive advantage as Vucinic volleyed home Daniele De Rossi’s lofted through ball on 39 minutes with Chievo’s defense going walkabout.
On the stroke of half-time, De Rossi blasted home a rocket from 25 meters to make Roma virtual champions at the break.
Inter’s determination after the restart was obvious as Curci tipped over a drive from Milito while Esteban Cambiasso fired just wide when well placed.
Mourinho went for broke by throwing on a fourth striker in Goran Pandev for midfielder Thiago Motta.
The pressure told on 57 minutes as captain Javier Zanetti burst forward from left back and slipped in Milito to finish with the outside of his right foot.
Inter had a chance to settle their nerves 14 minutes from time on the counter attack, but after Curci saved from Milito, Pandev’s follow-up was ruled out for offside.
The champions suffered a scare five minutes from time when on-loan Roma midfielder Aleandro Rosi almost caught out Julio Cesar with a cross that flew centimeters past the far post with the Brazilian stopper in no-man’s land.
In other games Sampdoria secured fourth place and Champions League football next season as Giampaolo Pazzini scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 home in over Napoli.
Palermo had to settle for fifth placed and the Europa League despite their last gasp 2-1 win at Atalanta.
The NHL postponed the Los Angeles Kings’ home game against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday with several massive wildfires burning across the greater Los Angeles area. The Kings and Flames were scheduled to play on Wednesday night at the Kings’ downtown arena. The NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers were scheduled to host the Charlotte Hornets in the same arena last night. “Our hearts are with our entire Los Angeles community,” the Kings said in a statement. “We appreciate the hard working first responders who are diligently working to contain the fire and protect our community. We appreciate the league’s support in keeping our
Doping fears prevented former US Open champion Emma Raducanu from treating insect bites on the eve of the Australian Open, she said, with players increasingly wary about ingesting contaminated substances. The British player was speaking in the wake of high-profile doping cases involving Iga Swiatak and Jannik Sinner. “I would say all of us are probably quite sensitive to what we take on board, what we use,” the 22-year-old said, recalling an incident on Friday. “I got really badly bitten by, I don’t know what, like ants, mosquitoes, something. I’m allergic, I guess,” she added. The bites “flared up and swelled up really a
TWO IN A WEEK: Despite an undefeated start to the year playing alongside Jiang Xinyu of China, Wu Fang-hsien is to play the Australian Open with a Russian partner Taiwan’s Wu Fang-hsien yesterday triumphed at the Hobart International, winning the women’s doubles title at the US$275,094 outdoor hard-court tournament, while McCartney Kessler lifted the trophy in the women’s singles. Fourth-ranked Wu and partner Jiang Xinyu of China took 1 hour, 15 minutes to defeat Romania’s Monica Niculescu and Fanny Stollar of Hungary, 6-1, 7-6 (8/6) at the Hobart International Tennis Centre, their second title in a week. Wu and Jiang on Sunday won the women’s doubles title at the ASB Classic in Auckland, beating Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic and Sabrina Santamaria of the US. Their winning ways continued in Australia as they stretched
EL CLASSICO: La Liga champions Real Madrid would face Barcelona in the Super Cup final tomorrow. Barca secured their final spot after a 2-0 win over Bilbao on Wednesday Real Madrid would chase a record-equaling 14th Spanish Super Cup title in the final against Barcelona after second-half goals by Jude Bellingham and Rodrygo helped them to a 3-0 win over Mallorca in the semi-finals on Thursday. England midfielder Bellingham broke the deadlock after the hour mark with a low shot into the middle of the goal before Mallorca defender Martin Valjent’s own goal doubled the lead in stoppage time followed by a Rodrygo strike from close range. Spanish champions Real are to play Barcelona for the trophy tomorrow after goals by Gavi and Lamine Yamal earned Barca a 2-0 win over
RSS