The Derby della Madonnina never disappoints, and this match was no exception. Played at full throttle for 90 minutes, it was certainly not for the faint of heart. Despite being given two penalties from a ref that literally called nothing else, Inter were not able to capitalize on their advantage. Milan were unlucky to hit the post late in the game, but at the end of the day a draw was probably a fair result. This cross-city Derby was insanely intense.
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| Still undefeated in Serie A |
The scene was set as Milan were the home crowd, and Pioli was given his Serie A coach of the month award. As each team displayed their coreo, it was clear who are the better team. Milan displayed an amazing coreo that first spelled out "Grazie" with the city skyline, then unfurled a beautiful tribute to the first responders who have worked so hard to fight COVID-19. Inter, meanwhile, unfurled a shameless banner honoring themselves, bragging about having won the Scudetto last season (even though they crashed out of the Champions League and couldn't even pay their players.) Inter always show their true colors.
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| "Milan doesn't forget" (or at least the red half of Milan doesn't forget) |
The same was true as the game got going, and Doveri whistled a penalty for Inter for a Calhanoglu challenge on Kessié. VAR could not convince him to reverse it, nor did he even look at it, and the Milan fans were so busy whistling Calhanoglu that he couldn't hear properly anyway. And of course, the much-despised traitor stepped up and converted it. 1-0 Inter in the 11th minute. Of course, the snake celebrated, too. I wouldn't expect anything less from a man who has spent as much time in court as he has on the pitch, and is currently being sued by a former agent.
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| Taking credit for something given to him, then celebrating - he's perfect for Inter |
Milan responded without hesitation, with Leão taking a couple of shots, including a rocket of a shot that Handanović barely saved. In the 17th minute, Tonali sent a free kick in that even Tomori thought he headed into the net, but it was actually a de Vrij own goal. 1-1 all. Perhaps a little bit of Karma, but not enough. Milan fans can feel a little slighted by the first penalty call, and Tomori can feel slighted for de Vrij stealing his goal, but at the end of the day, we needed to finish them off of our own merit.
Ballo-Touré felled Darmian in the box like a lumberjack cutting a tree, and was awarded a yellow card, and, yes, you guessed it: another penalty for Inter. Only this time, Lautaro Martinez took it and took it well. Tatarusanu, who has had some shaky moments deputizing for Maignan, had a massive save to deny Inter the goal. Ballo-Touré tried to make up for the penalty with a great goal line clearance just a minute before halftime, but that was his last contribution.
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| Massive save |
The second half was like being in the trenches. The fouls were flying, but Doveri's whistle was not. Replays showing clear shirt pulls and other fouls that he just ignored. Shots were traded, with Milan looking more dangerous, particularly in the last 15 minutes. Both Ibrahimović and Calhanoglu sent a shot apiece across the face of the respective goals. Rebić returned as a sub and had a couple of chances blocked. Saelemaekers actually hit the post in the 90th minute, and Kessié's rebound was just wide as well. Absolutely heart-stopping.
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| Once again, Milan win the coreo, hands down |
Speaking of heart-stopping, I hope Calhanoglu had someone walk him to his car.
After a Derby d'Italia match a couple of weeks ago that was like watching someone who had flatlined, this match was like someone with tachycardia, a dangerously fast heartrate. It had all of the venom of the Derby, with a referee who was like the parents who don't watch their children. I guess after Maresca's record number of cards this season when we played Roma last week, he didn't want to get caught in that trap. The lack of calls only created more tension for the fans in a truly intense city Derby.
This post inspired by the music of Suicidal Tendencies' "Institutionalized"