Rome: Captain Mauro Icardi struck a dramatic injury-time winner as Inter Milan stunned AC Milan 1-0 in the derby at the San Siro to retake third place in Serie A.
The Argentinian pounced on a mistake by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to nod home in the second minute of added-on time after an otherwise forgettable match, leaving Gennaro Gattuso’s Milan without a win in the last five league derbies.
But Inter continued their recent resurgence under Luciano Spalletti after finishing fourth last term to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 2011-12, moving to within six points of leaders Juventus, after their 1-1 home draw with Genoa Saturday.
“I came here to win, not to just sit on a bench for a season and try to bring home a salary,” former Roma coach Spalletti told Sky Sport Italia. “I came here to organise the future of Inter and the players must do the same.”
However, despite the victory, Inter will miss the services of Radja Nainggolan in their Champions League clash against Barcelona after the players was substituted midway through the first half after tangling with AC midfielder Lucas Biglia.
Icardi had the ball in the net early on, but the striker’s effort was ruled out for offside after a check with VAR. The scoreline would have been in favour for Inter in the first half had Ivan Perisic’s header not palmed away by Donnarumma and Stefan de Vrij striking the crossbar with a twisting volley.
However, as the game appeared to be petering out into a goalless draw, but Donnaruma came and failed to claim a speculative right-wing cross from Vecino, and Icardi headed into the unguarded net to score his fourth league goal of the campaign and spark jubilant scenes among the Inter fans in the stands.
