Francesco Acerbi, Alessandro Buongiorno and Scott McTominay were among the standout performers in a 1-1 draw between Inter and Napoli: check out the player ratings from San Siro.
It wasn’t as entertaining as Inter-Juventus in October, but the big match of Serie A Round 12 between the Nerazzurri and Napoli ended similarly, with the teams sharing one point apiece.
The Partenopei took the lead in the first half with McTominay’s third goal in 10 competitive games across all competitions, but Hakan Calhanoglu equalised before the break with a shot from distance.
Alex Meret could probably have done more to deny the Turkish star, but his attempt from afar was still impressive.
There was another big moment in the second half, when Calhanoglu missed his first penalty in an Inter shirt.
Acerbi nullified Romelu Lukaku, who was booed by his former fans for the whole night. Napoli’s Alessandro Buongiorno was equally impressive as he won all duels in the air (four) and on the ground (three).
Inter vs Napoli – Player ratings
Inter: Sommer 6, Pavard 6.5, Acerbi 7, Bastoni 6.5 (88′ de Vrij); Dumfries 5.5, Barella 6.5, Calhanoglu 6 (82′ Zielinski), Mkhitaryan 5.5, Dimarco 6 (82′ Darmian); M Thuram 5.5 (82′ Taremi), Lautaro Martinez 5.5 (88′ Arnautovic). Coach: Inzaghi 6.
Best Inter player – Acerbi 7 – The Italian dominated in defence, returning to action after nearly a month on the sidelines. He left no space for his ex-teammate Lukaku and followed the Belgian all over the pitch.
Lowest Inter ratings – Lautaro, Thuram, Mkhitaryan, Dumfries 5.5: All from different reasons. The Nerazzurri attacking pair was disjointed; Lautaro and Thuram didn’t link up as they usually do and were sometimes selfish. Mkhitaryan’s passing accuracy wasn’t great (85%), and Dumfries didn’t create trouble down the right flank. He was also inaccurate with the ball at his feet.
Inter coach—Inzaghi 6: Inter dominated the possession, but it was still not enough to win. They were a bit unlucky, as Calhanoglu missed his first Inter penalty on the worst possible occasion.
Napoli: Meret 5.5; Di Lorenzo 6, Rrahmani 6.5, Buongiorno 7, Olivera 6; Anguissa 5.5, Gilmour 5.5 (60′ Lobotka 5.5), McTominay 7; Politano 6 (84′ Ngonge), Lukaku 5 (77′ Simeone 6) Kvaratskhelia 6.5. Coach: Conte 6.5
Best Napoli players – Buongiorno and McTominay 7: The Italy international was excellent defensively, while the Scotland international was solid in central midfield and scored a key goal in the first half.
Lowest Napoli rating – Gilmour, Anguissa 5.5: The Scotland international left too much space for Calhanoglu while Anguissa caused a – debatable – penalty and looked pretty tired.
Napoli coach – Conte 6.5: The game plan was clear. Defend deep and try to win it with counter-attacks. It didn’t work out entirely, but it’s a good point for Napoli.