Inter answered their derby defeat in the best way. Three days after losing 3-1 to AC Milan, Cristian Chivu’s side won 3-0 at Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Piotr Zieliński got the third goal after Yann Bisseck and Pio Esposito had put them two up.
It was a big result in Rotterdam. Inter lost their first two games of the league phase, and now they have won two in a row.
A fast start at De Kuip
Inter did not wait long. They won the ball high up the pitch in the eighth minute and Bisseck finished the move to make it 1-0.
The away side were in control for most of the first half. Djed Spence was a problem for Feyenoord down the right, and in the 34th minute his ball into the box ended with Esposito heading in the second goal from close range.
Inter played without Lautaro Martínez, who is injured, but Esposito did his job in the middle.
Zieliński ends the contest
Any hope of a Feyenoord comeback was gone nine minutes after the break. Zieliński got into a shooting position in the 54th minute and his shot went in for 3-0, with Nicolò Barella setting him up.
Esposito thought he had scored again around the 66th minute, but his goal was ruled out for offside. Feyenoord kept trying late on, but they never found a way through.
Where Inter stand now
The win takes Inter to six points from four games. They came to Rotterdam under pressure, after a poor start in Europe and a derby defeat at the weekend.
Two wins in a row in the Champions League, after the 1-0 home win over Shakhtar Donetsk, give Chivu some breathing space.
Our take
This was a clean, grown-up away performance. Inter scored early and then managed the game well, and the third goal soon after half-time killed it off. Feyenoord are hard to play against at home, so a 3-0 win there means a lot.
The bigger question is whether it lasts. Inter still have work to do to reach the top eight, and the derby loss will not be forgotten soon. Still, Esposito is growing into this team, and that is good news while Lautaro is out.
Is this the win that gets Inter’s season going? Tell us in the comments.
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Piotr Zieliński by Светлана Бекетова (CC BY-SA 3.0); Pio Esposito by NewMicrosoikos (CC0); Cristian Chivu by Andrei Stroe (CC BY-SA 3.0); De Kuip by Steven Lek (CC BY-SA 4.0).
