Parma may be a tough nut to crack, but not for Inter

Inter Milan overcame the obstacle on which several of their rivals in the Scudetto race tripped! Juventus drew in Turin, and Lazio lost to Parma at Stadio Ennio Tardini five days ago, but Simone Inzaghi's crew did not allow themselves to make the same mistakes.

The Nerazzurri controlled the game from the start and broke Parma's defensive wall netting shortly before and after the break, securing the three points. After grabbing a 2-0 lead behind Dimarco and Barella's goals, it was much easier to play. By the end of the game, each team netted once more, but the scorers in either situation were Inter's players, as Thuram netted for his team, and Darmian scored an own goal.

Despite Inter's numerous chances in the first half an hour, Parma managed to hold out. Lautaro Martinez was close to conceding a penalty, but VAR ruled out the tackle had been made outside the box. Denzel Dumfries hit the post, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan wasted a decent opportunity, firing wide off the post.

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However, five minutes before the break, Parma's custodian, Zion Suzuki, had to get the ball out of his net! Federico Dimarco and Mkhitaryan broke the visitors' defence through the left flank, with the wing-back taking the role of an impeccable finisher for 1-0!

Eleven minutes into the second half, Mkhitaryan found Nicolo Barella with a remarkable through ball, and the Italian midfielder sent the ball home as if he were a world-class centre-forward, making it 2-0 for the champions! After the second goal, it was much easier for Inter, which netted the third 11 minutes later, thanks to Marcus Thuram, who was the most resourceful in the opponents' box after a corner!

Parma managed to make the defeat more bearable behind their former player Matteo Darmian's 81st-minute own goal, but that was all Fabio Pecchia's men did tonight at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.

Tonight's triumph brings Inter back to one point behind leaders Napoli, while Parma are still safe in the middle of the table with a decent 15 points. The Nerazzurri can now peacefully prepare for the Champions League duel against Bayer Leverkusen in Germany next Tuesday and a Serie A derby against Lazio in the next round.

SERIE A - MATCHDAY 15

Friday

Inter - Parma 3-1 (1-0)

/Dimarco 40, Barella 56, Thuram 67 - Darmian 81 og/

22.45: (2.15) Atalanta (3.50) Milan (3.60)

Saturday

17.00: (2.50) Genoa (3.20) Torino (3.20)

20.00: (1.75) Juventus (3.60) Bologna (5.60)

22.45: (1.60) Roma (3.90) Lecce (7.00)

Sunday

14.30: (1.52) Fiorentina (4.20) Cagliari (6.25)

17.00: (2.60) Verona (3.15) Empoli (3.10)

20.00: (2.85) Venezia (3.30) Como (2.70)

22.45: (1.90) Napoli (3.60) Lazio (4.50)

Monday

22.45: (2.70) Monza (3.00) Udinese (2.90)

***odds are subject to change***