Inter 2-0 Salernitana: Nerazzurri finding their feet after rocky start

Inter Milan clinched their third win in four games as they comfortably beat Salernitana 2-0 at San Siro.

Simone Inzaghi had come under pressure after a shaky start to the season saw Inter lose five of their first 10 matches, but they are now unbeaten in four and built on Wednesday's promising 3-3 draw away to Barcelona with three points in Serie A.

Lautaro Martinez's long-range effort gave Inter a first-half lead on Sunday, and although the hosts struggled to add to that initially, Salernitana rarely looked capable of posing much of a threat.

A brilliant Nicolo Barella goal put Inter in complete control just before the hour, ensuring the Nerazzurri moved to within two points of the top four for at least a few hours.

The visitors' resistance lasted just 13 minutes as Martinez's 25-yard strike bobbled awkwardly on its way past Luigi Sepe and into the bottom-left corner.

Edin Dzeko headed agonisingly wide as Inter looked to put the game beyond Salernitana, before Sepe kept out Milan Skriniar's powerful close-range effort.

But Inter's best opportunity to double the lead before the break came on the stroke of half-time – Martinez missed the ball as he tried to backheel Denzel Dumfries' pass goalwards, with Sepe saving a point-blank header when the Argentinian was offered a fortunate reprieve.

Boulaye Dia forced Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana into action early in the second half, but the points were wrapped up four minutes later.

Barella brought Hakan Calhanoglu's pinpoint pass down exquisitely in the box before flicking the ball past a defender and drilling left-footed into the bottom-right corner to seal a routine triumph.

What does it mean? – Inzaghi building positivity again

It was not so long ago that Inzaghi looked in real danger of losing his job. He certainly is not out of the woods yet, but things are going in the right direction.

With three wins and a draw – which itself was very nearly a victory – in the past 12 days, Inter are beginning to look a little more like their usual selves.

While this may not have been a spectacular performance, you have to credit the professionalism in Inter's display. Salernitana hardly threatened at all.

Calhanoglu pulls the strings

Much of what was good about Inter's performance stemmed from Calhanoglu. The Turkey international's four key passes led the match, and he also got an assist for Barella's goal with that wonderful long-range pass into the box.

Piatek virtually anonymous

Former Milan forward Krzysztof Piatek was particularly quiet for Salernitana. He probably was not helped by being seemingly shunted out to the right, but even then he might have been a bit more involved. The Poland international was unsurprisingly withdrawn just after Inter's second goal, having had just one attempt, though he did get it on target at least.

Key Opta Facts

- Inter have won all the four Serie A home games against Salernitana, scoring at least two goals in all these four matches.
- Salernitana have lost all seven Serie A matches they have played at San Siro against Inter or Milan.
- Martinez has scored five goals in three Serie A appearances against Salernitana. He has netted in two appearances in a row for the first time since August.
- Since he joined (2018), Martinez is the Nerazzurri player with the most goals scored from outside the box in all competitions (nine).
- Barella has been directly involved in seven goals (three goals, four assists) in Serie A this season, more than any other Inter player. Lazio's Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (10, three goals and seven assists) is the only midfielder in the league who has been directly involved in more goals.

What's next?

Inter go to Fiorentina on Saturday, while Salernitana host Spezia the same day.