Inter Secures Late Victory Against Venezia to Stay Joint Leaders
Inter Milan clinched a crucial 2-0 win over Venezia, aided by an own goal and a deflected header from Carlos Augusto, allowing them to maintain their position as joint leaders alongside Lazio. The Nerazzurri understood the importance of securing three points after their recent close call, which saw them score two goals in added time to defeat Fiorentina 2-1.
Despite missing key players like Lautaro Martinez, Benjamin Pavard, Curtis Jones, John Stones, and Luis Henrique, Ivan Provedel made his second consecutive start for Inter. Venezia, under coach Davide Nicola, had previously enjoyed a winning debut against Napoli, but slipped back into old habits with a disappointing 1-0 loss to Genoa. The Venetians were also without Andrea Adorante, Thierry Correia, Marin Sverko, and Bartol Franjic, who are long-term absentees.
This match featured an engaging duel between the Stankovic brothers, Filip guarding the goal for Venezia, while Aleksandar made his first start in midfield for Inter, both having emerged from the Nerazzurri academy and following in their father Dejan’s footsteps.
Federico Dimarco went close with a curled shot that missed the target, and Venezia’s Petar Sucic appealed for a penalty after going down under slight contact from Thorir Helgason during a change of direction.
Following a similar incident, Ivan Provedel showcased his skills with a one-handed save against Akor Adams and later parried a deflected free kick from Kike Perez, although Lauberbach’s celebrations were cut short by an offside decision.
The game opened up when Provedel managed to deflect a shot from Lauberbach onto the crossbar. Venezia created further opportunities on the counter-attack, but another header from the striker went off target.
Andy Diouf’s low cross-shot tested Venezia’s Filip Stankovic, but Inter’s Cristian Chivu responded by making a triple substitution at halftime to energize his side. Marcus Thuram had a long-range attempt saved, while Venezia missed a near-open goal, as Gianluca Busio failed to convert a simple chance shortly after the hour mark.
As the match progressed, Venezia found the net but faced another offside call when Adams circumvented Provedel following a through ball from John Yeboah.
Thuram later came close with a shot from close quarters, yet it was Inter who broke the deadlock. Carlos Augusto launched a counterattack after a tackle on Simon Sohm; Thuram’s pull-back was misdirected by Matias Moreno, resulting in an own goal. Venezia’s protests for a foul during the build-up fell on deaf ears.
Just two minutes later, Inter added a second goal. Carlos Augusto’s glancing header from a Hakan Calhanoglu corner deflected off Redouane Halhal before finding the back of the net.
Venezia 0-2 Inter
Moreno og 80 (I), Carlos Augusto 82 (I)
