First-half goals by Denzel Dumfries and Lautaro Martinez earned Inter Milan a comfortable 2-0 win at newcomers Cagliari in Serie A on Monday.
After 21 minutes, a midfield mishap by Cagliari gave Marcus Thuram the chance to skilfully thread the ball to Dumfries, who executed an angled drive to break the deadlock.
At the half-hour mark, Martinez latched on to Federico DiMarco’s pass and clinically finished from close range to extend the visitors’ lead.
Giù il sipario a Cagliari 💫I 3️⃣ punti sono nostri 😁#ForzaInter #CagliariInter pic.twitter.com/txdy2SR6k2— Inter (@Inter) August 28, 2023
Unipol Domus buzzed with passionate energy as Cagliari fans once again welcomed Serie A matches after a year-long absence, following their goalless draw at Torino in the first round.
“The lads did very well, from the first minute we had the right approach against a newly-promoted side that had done very well in its opening game and was making its return to Serie A in front of their fans," Inter manager Simone Inzaghi told DAZN.
In the early minutes, Martinez narrowly missed giving Inter the lead when his volley struck the inside of the far post and deflected away while team mate Hakan Calhanoglu also hit the goal frame as the match neared its conclusion.
Cagliari’s Zito Luvumbo appealed for a penalty after he went down following a collision with the Inter defence but the referee waved play on.
Martinez appears to be thriving in his newfound role as captain as he has now scored three goals in the first two matches, and
“In these two years and a bit I have been at Inter, he has been growing exponentially," Inzaghi said.
“He feels more and more responsibility; he has a key role in the way we interpret the game and I am sure he will continue like this."
Just before the conclusion, Paulo Azzi had a golden opportunity to score for Cagliari but Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer produced a reflex save from point-blank range.
Also, Salernitana and Udinese drew 1-1, with Boulaye Dia equalizing midway through the second half after Lazar Samardzic’s opener for Udinese. Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa made seven saves to keep Salernitana in the match.
(With inputs from Agencies)