Derby d’Italia, which is billed as the fiercest derby in Italy, given the history of bad blood between the two set of fans and teams, turned out to be a battle of wits between managers Gigi Del Neri of Juventus and Leonardo of Inter. The on-going drama of Calciopoli/Farsopoli would only have made a victory here for either team even more sweeter. The Bianconeri’s form was not the best going into this game as they had won just 2 out of their last 6 games, while the Nerazzurri were coming off 3 wins in as many games. Inter were gunning for the scudetto while Juve were aiming for a Champions League spot, a gulf in ambition between two historically renowned clubs.
Team Selection and Tactics
Del Neri retained his 4-4-2 formation for this crucial encounter. For the first time this season, the tactician had the luxury of selecting two out of four available strikers, and he went with new signings Matri and Toni in attack. In defence, given Juve’s problems at the fullbacks position, Del Neri deployed four natural centre-backs with Chiellini and Sorensen used as left and right fullback respectively. The young Dane was given a daunting task of stifling Samuel Eto’o’s influence on the game. Andrea Barzagli continued to partner Leonardo Bonucci in the centre of defense after his strong displays against Cagliari and Palermo.
Claudio Marchisio, who scored a delightful winner in this very fixture last season, had recovered in time and took his place on the left side of midfield. Brazilian hardman Felipe Melo and Alberto Aquilani occupied the heart of Juve midfield, while Milos Krasic, on the right, was up against Inter captain and legend Javier Zanetti. Gigi Buffon continued his role between the sticks.
Leonardo was forced to field Andrea Rannochia and Ivan Cordoba as the backbone of his defense, as he was without the services of players like Lucio, Samuel and Chivu who were all out injured. Javier Zanetti was preferred over Yuto Nagatomo at left back in a bid to halt Krasic’s surging runs down the flank. While Maicon was expected to bomb up and down the right for Inter as he has been doing all these years.
Inter were without the experienced Stankovic in midfield and new signing Kharja took his place in his first derby. Thiago Motta was expected to shield centre back pair as he played just ahead of them. Esteban Cambiasso was enforced in midfield to keep a close eye on Alberto Aquilani. Sneijder was the man who would form the vital link between midfield and attack. Up front, in-form striker Giampaolo Pazzini led the attack with Samuel Eto’o fancied his chances against the inexperienced Sorensen from the left.
First Half
Both sides approached the game cautiously. However, the Juve defence was carved open in the early exchanges as Sneijder had a chance to put Pazzini through on goal after a lovely dummy by the former Sampdoria striker, however, the dutchman attempted to pass the ball to Eto’o but Sorensen made a crucial inteception. The first 20 minutes were very tight with chances coming few and far between. Inter, as expected, targetted Sorensen who was the weak-link in the defence but the Dane more than held his own and was supported by the experience of Barzagli.
30 minutes on the clock and Juve drew first blood with a text-book header by Alessandro Matri after a mistake by Cordoba left the striker free. Krasic was doubled up by the Inter defence which left Sorensen, who joined him in attack, with acres of space to deliver a pin point cross for Matri. The striker made no mistake and scored his 3rd goal in Juventus colours. Up until that point, neither of the goalkeepers were really tested with the derby turning out to be a midfield battle. Felipe Melo was a strong performer for Juventus, protecting the back-line admirably and covering for full-backs who were making attacking forays into opposition territory while limiting Sneijder’s influence; the dutchman was forced to fall deep in order to keep a hold of the ball. Chiellini was involved in a personal battle against Maicon.
Giampaolo Pazzini cut a frustrated figure up front for Inter. He was caught offside on many occasions, often mistiming his run and looking isolated as he lacked adequate support from his midfield. Leo Bonucci kept a close eye on him and shackled him tightly throughout the game not offering him an inch of space. The formers Fiorentina striker at times looked more interested in drawing a foul, more than anything else. Luca Toni, on the other hand, held up the ball for Juve excellently and worked very hard alongside Matri drawing defenders and offering an option for Juve, who were content with playing on the counter. Inter dominated possession in the first half but found it difficult to carve out openings against a very organized Juventus side, who took a precious lead going into half time.
Second Half
From the very onset of the second half, both teams came out all guns blazing. Maicon was affoarded far too much space on the right and he delivered an accurate cross for Pazzini who could only direct his header straight towards Buffon. At the other end, Matri had the oppurtunity to double Juve’s lead and score his second goal of the night after Krasic threw in a superb cross, but the striker could only head it wide, closely shaving Julio Cesar’s post. The lack of communication between Inter’s central defensive pairing was crystal clear as they let Matri sneak in between them unmarked. Juve then came close with a Chiellini header that went just wide from a set-piece.
Leonardo then turned towards Goran Pandev for inspiration who came on in place of Kharja who was pretty lacklustre on the night. Inter switched to a more attack-minded 4-2-3-1 formation. But Pandev’s contribution was negligible as he couldn’t really make an impact on the game. The game calmed down a bit which was good news for Juventus. Players were reduced to attempting long range efforts on goal in a frustrating night for attackers. Del Neri decided to withdraw a tired Luca Toni who exhibited a brilliant team-performance for Vincenzo Iaquinta who made his return to the first team yet again after an injury. Melo had taken a knock which forced him out of the game, and Sissoko took his place in midfield. Claudio Marchisio looked visibly exhausted and made way for Simone Pepe. Matri was in pain, his ribs were clearly troubling him and although he did receive treatment from the sidelines, he played on. Leonardo then played his last card by bringing on attacking full-back Nagatomo for Esteban Cambiasso.
Inter however, just could not find a way through Juve’s defence, which was compact and assured. The Nerazzurri looked most threatining everytime Maicon was in possession. Indeed their closest chance to level the proceedings came in the 89th minute when the Brazilian drove in an inviting ball, which completely eluded the Juve back line. Samuel Eto’o had the oppurtunity he had been waiting for, to tie the game and come away with a point from Turin and to give the Inter faithful something to smile about. However, lady luck was smiling on the Bianconeri, as Eto’o somehow criminally managed to hit the cross bar when it was easier to score. This would surely go down as one of the misses of the season from an otherwise reliable player. Inter players and fans alike couldn’t believe it.