Inter Milan produced a ruthless first-half blitz to beat Como 2-0 at San Siro on Sunday, with Francesco Pio Esposito and Marcus Thuram scoring inside the opening 19 minutes to lift the champions into second place in Serie A, one point behind leaders Lazio.
Two goals in 19 minutes settle it
The breakthrough came after just 12 minutes. Federico Dimarco robbed Lucas Da Cunha to spark a counter-attack, Thuram's disguised pass sent Djed Spence racing down the right, and his low cross was tapped in from close range by Esposito — the young striker's first Serie A goal in nearly two months, and a reminder of why Inter believe so much in him. Esposito was also on target in Europe in midweek, scoring in the win at Feyenoord that kept Inter's Champions League campaign on track.
Seven minutes later the game was effectively over. Dimarco fed Piotr Zielinski down the left, Alex Valle failed to deal with the cross, and Thuram swept the loose ball home from six yards for his sixth league goal of the season. As Football Italia noted in its report, it was Inter's 12th consecutive Serie A victory over Como — the one big side Cesc Fabregas has simply been unable to crack.
Como's run ends at San Siro
Como arrived in Milan as the form team in Italy. Fabregas had urged his players to stay humble after their extraordinary 9-1 demolition of Lens in the Champions League, the biggest away win in the competition's history, in the middle of a six-match winning run in all competitions. But at San Siro they were kept at arm's length throughout, as TNT Sports described it, and rarely threatened to become the latest side to expose Inter's defensive wobbles.
Esposito departed to warm applause after picking up a late yellow card, replaced by Ange-Yoan Bonny, while Thuram — the clear man of the match — was withdrawn two minutes from time for Benjamin Pavard as Cristian Chivu closed the game out. Inter's perfect home record in Serie A this season survives into the international break.
So what does it mean for the title race?
Everything. Inter bounce straight back from last week's 3-1 derby defeat to AC Milan and move onto 28 points, one behind Lazio, who were held 1-1 at Napoli earlier on Sunday. Just two points separate Lazio from third-placed Roma, with Milan — 2-1 winners at Genoa — now fourth on 24 points. Como slip to fifth on 23 after Milan overtook them, and Fabregas's men host Cagliari after the break knowing the top four is still within reach. Inter, meanwhile, travel to Atalanta — exactly the kind of fixture that will tell us whether this fast start is a title charge or another false dawn.
Beyond the Final Whistle: this is what champions do. Stung by a derby defeat, Inter did not sulk — they settled a difficult game inside 19 minutes and managed it like a side that expects to be top in May. The Esposito-Thuram pairing gives Chivu pace, power and a homegrown story the fans adore, and with Lazio finally dropping points, the Scudetto race is wide open. Can Inter carry this form to Bergamo after the break — and is Esposito now undroppable?
