Milan cries, Naples gets up. In summary, this is the title that leaves us with Sunday football. Obviously, Inter's collapse took the "front page", leaving San Siro with broken bones against a Cagliari that was never so good this season, but also Milan's draw in Cesena and the Azzurri's victory against Sassuolo lead to various reflections. However, it is right to start from Mazzarri's team, defeated, indeed humiliated, by Zeman and by herself. Yes, because without taking anything away from the Sardinians and their splendid match, there is the clear feeling that Inter almost hurt themselves. Do you know the solid, compact and united team seen this week against Atalanta? Well, the exact opposite happened yesterday. Long, bewildered, fragile and completely devoid of bite, the nerazzurri took a historic beating against a Cagliari who hadn't won at the San Siro for 19 years.
Symbol of the disaster Nagatomo, captain for the occasion, first author of the involuntary assist for Sau's 0-1 (10'), then two yellow carding fouls that left Inter outnumbered. And so the boat, righted for a few minutes by Osvaldo (18'), took on water again and then sank inexorably. Within a quarter of an hour Cagliari spread with Ekdal, author of a hat-trick (29', 34' and 44'), and could have scored again if Handanovic hadn't hypnotized Cossu's penalty (43'). A disaster across the board that the second half didn't help in the least to remedy. “I got some turnover assessments wrong – explained Mazzarri. – The team expressed itself well against Atalanta but I should have changed more, also on a tactical level. When there were only 10 of us, we saw all our inexperience: there we had to manage with patience, not concede 4 goals".
The Nerazzurri thus remain on 8 points, joined by Inzaghi's Milan. However, he certainly cannot be satisfied with the draw in Cesena, even more in the light of the latest results (defeat against Juve and equal to Empoli). No meltdown, for heaven's sake, but a broth that certainly doesn't warm the hearts of the Rossoneri fans. The transition from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1 does not seem to have helped: the defensive limits have remained the same and the offensive phase, paradoxically, has produced less than usual despite the 4 forwards on the pitch. Indeed, it was Cesena who took the lead first with Succi, quick to pick up a defective rebound from Abbiati on a shot from Marilungo (10').
Milan have the merit of not going too far and immediately finding an equalizer with Rami, good at heading a corner from Honda (19'). However, the fireworks ended here and the Rossoneri came out in a reduced position after a start to the season that made the fans dream. “Everyone said we would face easy away games but I knew it wasn't like that – Inzaghi defended himself. – We have to grow in many things, it will take time. The spirit, however, is the right one: Juve and Roma are superior to us, we can compete with the others".
In fact, the standings would seem to agree with the AC Milan coach, given that Benitez's Napoli is just below. This time, however, the Azzurri can celebrate a victory never so expected. In fact, beating Sassuolo was almost vital for the team and the coach who can now at least breathe again. The Mapei Stadium is not a glittering Naples, on the other hand, given the delicacy of the moment, it could not be otherwise.
This time, however, the Azzurri, thanks to a little luck (Peluso's crossbar was sensational in the 90th minute), brought home the full tally with cynicism and character. A goal by Callejon (28') is enough for the three points, then it's careful management (and a little rough) that leads to victory. “I'm satisfied because we achieved a team success – said Benitez. – We still have to improve but victories help and the group has compacted to get a very important one”.
