Spectacular draw between Roma and Inter: Lautaro Martinez saves the Nerazzurri at the Olimpico
Roma vs. Inter ends 2-2: The match between the top two teams in the league, part of the fifth round of Serie A, ended in a draw but provided plenty of excitement at the Olimpico. In the first half, the Giallorossi took a 2-0 lead thanks to a brace by Koné; in the second half, the Nerazzurri staged a comeback thanks to goals from their captain, Lautaro Martinez. In the standings, the two teams are tied for first place with 13 points each.
A thrilling first half ended with Roma leading 2-0 after numerous chances on both sides. Gasperini’s team started strong and took the lead as early as the 5th minute: Dybala found Molina at the far post, who flicked the ball on to Koné, who beat Martinez from close range. Inter struggled to respond; the Giallorossi kept up constant pressure, and the home team came close to doubling their lead through Dybala in the 13th minute and again in the 24th minute with Malen.
Slowly, Inter began to find space, and chances started to come for Chivu’s team as well: in the 26th minute, Svilar makes a decisive save coming off his line against Bisseck; in the 29th minute, Lautaro Martinez misses a chance to equalize, let down by a deflection off Svilar; in the 33rd minute, Bastoni hits the outside of the post off an assist from Jones.
But in the 37th minute, it was Koné and the Olimpico who were celebrating once again: the French midfielder beat Martinez once more on a cross from Dybala that was deflected by Mancini. Referee Massa initially disallowed the goal but, following a VAR review, upheld the Rome side’s goal.
The Italian champions reacted fiercely; early in the second half, Lautaro Martinez got his team back in the game by scoring the 1-2 goal following a nice combination with Thuram. Inter stepped up the pressure; Chivu brought on Carlos Augusto and Sucic for Dimarco and Jones. Gasperini responded by bringing on Ndicka, Pisilli, and Rensch for Mancini, Koné, and Molina. The match remained evenly balanced; in the 68th minute, Roma came close to making it 3-1, but Martinez made a spectacular save, diving head-on to stop Malen. In the 66th minute, Gasperini was forced to substitute Balerdi due to cramps, bringing on Ghilardi.
In the 79th minute, the Italian champions equalized following a frantic sequence of play: Svilar first makes a spectacular save on Bisseck, then Lautaro Martinez hits the crossbar, and finally the Nerazzurri captain gets there first and beats Svilar again, making it 2-2. There were also some nail-biting moments in the closing minutes: in the 88th minute, on a counterattack, Thuram sent his shot just wide. And that was it.
