Inter on Sunday won their third Serie A title in six seasons thanks to a 2-0 victory over Parma that ignited the celebrations at a jubilant San Siro and across the city.
Marcus Thuram’s side-footed finish just before halftime set Inter on their way, before Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s second-half goal put the scudetto beyond doubt.
With three matches left, Inter have a 12-point lead over reigning champions SSC Napoli and 15 more points than third-placed AC Milan.
Photo: AFP
The San Siro was a sea of blue and black, and thousands of fans also gathered in front of Milan’s Duomo Cathedral to celebrate their team’s 21st Italian title.
Inter have successfully overcome a traumatic end to last season under the calm guidance of coach Cristian Chivu, who was almost a novice at this level when he took over in the summer last year.
Less than a year after losing the title race by a point and collapsing to a 5-0 humiliation by Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League final, Inter are back at the top.
“Today, we are all happy, but we must not forget all the work accomplished, because it was very difficult to start again after the end of last season when we lost in all the competitions we could win,” Inter captain Lautaro Martinez said.
Inter owe this success largely to Chivu, the club’s former player and a surprise appointment in June last year to replace Simone Inzaghi, who won six trophies and reached two Champions League finals in four seasons, but left for a lucrative deal in Saudi Arabia.
With small steps and few new signings, Chivu has breathed new life into the side.
Inter can complete the third league and cup double in their history if they beat SS Lazio in the Coppa Italia final on Wednesday next week at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.
Juventus missed a chance to exploit AC Milan’s earlier slip and take third place in Serie A as they drew 1-1 at home with relegated Hellas Verona, but the Turin giants did climb three points clear of Como in the chase for the fourth Champions league qualifying spot.
AC Milan had relinquished their last, slim hope of catching Inter at the top as they subsided 2-0 at mid-table US Sassuolo.
Milan endured a nightmare afternoon in Reggio Emilia, crashing to a fourth defeat in their past seven matches.
Juventus remained two points behind Milan after struggling to breach determined defending from Verona, who were relegated on Friday last week.
While Juve dominated possession they handed their visitors the opener when Domagoj Bradaric pounced on a poor pass and slid in a low cross that Kieron Bowie scuffed home.
It was one of Verona’s only two shots on target. Bowie drilled a long-range shot straight at Michele de Grigorio in the Juventus goal in the final five minutes.
Juventus bombarded the visitors’ goal, taking 23 shots, six of them on target. Dusan Vlahovic leveled after 61 minutes with a free-kick.
In Sassoulo, it took just five minutes for the hosts to take the lead through Domenico Berardi. Massimiliano Allegri’s Milan side played with 10 for most of the match after English defender Fikayo Tomori was sent off in the 24th minute.
Frenchman Armand Lauriente doubled Sassuolo’s lead in the 47th minute and a furious Allegri made a string of changes to no avail.
“I understand our fans’ frustration; we all want to secure Champions League qualification as soon as possible,” Allegri told broadcaster DAZN. “In these difficult times, we must keep our heads held high. We have three matches left to play, and with two wins, we’ll be in the Champions League.”
In Sunday’s other match, Bologna were held to a 0-0 draw by Cagliari.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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