Inter Milan managed to secure a hard-fought 1-0 win against Venezia, bouncing back from their recent Supercoppa Italiana disappointment. Matteo Darmian’s early goal proved decisive in a match that saw the Nerazzurri tested by a resilient Venezia side.
The visitors, still reeling from their dramatic 3-2 loss to AC Milan in the Supercoppa final, faced additional challenges with several key players sidelined due to injuries. Despite these setbacks, Inter started brightly and found the breakthrough early on.
The goal came from a moment of brilliance by Lautaro Martinez, whose exquisite first touch and volley from Kristjan Asllani’s long pass forced a save from Filip Stankovic. Darmian was quickest to react, tapping in the rebound to give Inter the lead.
Venezia, despite their own injury woes, grew into the game and posed a significant threat in the second half. Gaetano Oristanio and Issa Doumbia both came close to equalizing, with the latter’s header requiring a crucial save from Yann Sommer.
The home side’s best chance came in the 74th minute when Gianluca Busio’s curling effort struck the far post, with Joel Pohjanpalo’s rebound ruled offside. Inter had opportunities to extend their lead on the counter-attack, with Marcus Thuram and Davide Frattesi combining well but unable to find the finishing touch.
Venezia’s late push for an equalizer included a penalty appeal for handball against Piotr Zielinski, which was waved away, and a last-gasp effort from Pohjanpalo that was comfortably saved by Sommer.
Goals: Darmian 16 (I)
Venezia (3-5-2): Stankovic; Idzes, Sverko, Sagrado (25′ Haps); Zampano (87′ Gytkjaer), Busio, Nicolussi Caviglia (87′ Conde), Doumbia (69′ Bjarkason), Ellertsson; Oristanio (69′ Yeboah), Pohjanpalo.
Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Darmian, de Vrij, Bastoni; Dumfries (75′ Pavard), Barella (3′ Dimarco), Asllani (62′ Frattesi), Zielinski, Carlos Augusto; Taremi (62′ Thuram), Lautaro (75′ Arnautovic)
