Ronaldo stops Turin. The derby della Mole ends with a draw which, paradoxically, goes better for the bianconeri than for the grenade. Ranking issues, given that Juventus have already been champions of Italy for some time while Toro is chasing a prestigious and fragile area of Europe: given the overcrowding of teams in just a few points, in fact, it's a snap to go from the Champions League to… nothing . And then the grenades really tasted the joy to conquer the Stadium for the first time and they would have succeeded, were it not for the fact that on the other side there was a certain CR7, one who, as everyone knows, does not know the meaning of the word 'surrender'. Only he could catch up with Toro with one of the (many) specialties of the house, that header that seems to be able to do much better than anyone else: watching yesterday's goal is believing, with the Portuguese breaking away up there in the sky and the others watching .
Faced with so much grace, the grenades had to abandon the dream of winning the derby, moreover away from home (it hasn't happened since 1995) and, perhaps, even their Champions League ambitions: still possible, for heaven's sake, but extremely linked to the results of their rivals. If successful, however, everything would have been different and Toro, at a certain point, really believed he could do it, also because, for once, he seemed to have the gods of football on his side. Lukic's opening goal, for example, came thanks to a sensational defensive blunder by Pjanic, who sent the Serbian on goal for a 1-0 lead (18'). From then on Allegri had tried to react, raising the center of gravity and crushing Mazzarri but without the hunger necessary to sink the blow. But then, just when the match was heading towards a victory that would upset all the balances of the Champions League race, Ronaldo scored a great goal (84') and the final 1-1, much more appreciated by Juve than by Toro.
“I think it would have been an undeserved defeat because the team played a good match, we lacked a bit in accuracy in the last 20 meters but in the second half Torino practically never shot – Allegri's analysis. – We gave him the goal, now we're going to Rome against another team in the running for the Champions League and we hope to recover someone”. “The only time we were less careful a phenomenon like Ronaldo punished us – replied Mazzarri. – We have conceded very little to a great team. Fourth place? I complimented the boys. There are three games and you have to play them like today and with Milan, with lower level teams we have to win”. Champions League calculations which obviously also interest Inter, whose advantage in the standings is not yet sufficient to claim victory. A success today at Udinese (at 20.30) would help a lot, especially since the calendar between now and the end will be anything but prohibitive. Failing at the Dacia Arena, on the other hand, could have rather complicated effects, calling into question not only third place but even qualification itself. In short, Inter need to win to end the discussion but Udinese will be equally hungry for points on their way, entangled as they are in a fight for salvation yet to be decided.
“We have to approach this match in the right way – Spalletti's warning. – Playing at home for a team fighting for salvation, with four games to go, is like facing a direct match, due to the level of difficulty. We have a difficult match, but precisely because of the importance of the goal, it becomes essential to win”. In fact, a success would bring the goal much closer, making possible the beginning of future planning, even if it is by no means obvious that this will concern Spalletti himself. His permanence is under strong discussion, as is that of Icardi, who has returned to the limelight more for his wife Wanda (this time it was daring photos published on social media) than for field reasons. “My future is called Udinese-Inter, then Chievo and so on until the last matchday – glossed over the coach. – Icardi? The photos of him do not interest me, what matters is that in Appiano he is dressed as Inter, not the rest… ”.
The feeling is that Spalletti has decided to postpone any question until the goal has been achieved and that he only has today's game in mind, without any distractions. The coach is well aware that these 3 points could allow him to reach the coveted goal of the season and will try to obtain them by relying on the usual 4-2-3-1, albeit without Icardi: the former captain will sit on the bench, possibly ready to take over in the race in progress. From the start we will see Handanovic in goal, D'Ambrosio, De Vrij, Skriniar and Asamoah in defence, Gagliardini and Brozovic in midfield, Politano, Nainggolan and Perisic behind the lone striker Lautaro Martinez. Important absences instead for Tudor, who will have to give up the suspended Samir and the injured Trost-Ekong and Fofana. However, the tactical mold will not change, therefore 3-5-2 with Musso between the posts, Larsen, De Maio and Nuytinck in the back department, D'Alessandro, Mandragora, Sandro, De Paul and Zeegelaar in the midfield, Pussetto and Okaka in attack.
