Inter coach Simone Inzaghi called it a ‘perfect match’ after his side swept to a 3-0 victory over city rivals AC Milan to lift the Supercoppa Italiana for the second year in a row.
The Nerazzurri had been in better form and had fewer injuries than the Rossoneri going into the game in Saudi Arabia and it showed as Federico Dimarco and Edin Dzeko both found the net in the opening 21 minutes. Lautaro Martinez added the third in the final 15 minutes.
“We were good at preparing for a perfect match, we were always lucid and compact, we won a very important cup,” Inzaghi enthused, adding that securing the trophy was the second most important moment of the season so after reaching the Champions League knockout stages.
“It’s a pleasure to see a team play like this. We’re enjoying this trophy because winning like this against Milan in a final is wonderful. It’s nice to have won like this against a valuable opponent.
“I am proud of the guys and my staff because we have done incredible things. We played a focused, aggressive match, with running and determination, we pushed and played it in the best way. Now we have to continue like this.”
Dimarco, whose early goal set the tone, said: “There are no emotions to describe this evening, it was beautiful, scoring in a derby in a Supercoppa final is incredible. We knew it was going to be a one-off challenge, we took the field with the desire to win and we did it.”
Hakan Calhanoglu, who swapped Milan for Inter on a free transfer in 2021, spoke of the importance of carrying momentum back into Serie A – the Nerazzurri are currently in the last Champions League place with only a narrow three-point cushion over fifth place Lazio.
“We were hungry, we showed what we are worth on the pitch,” Calhanoglu said. “We believe in it, we have done well in the last few games and we must continue like this, now we must concentrate on the championship which will not be easy but we believe in it.”
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Credit: 90min.com