Argentinian Lautaro Martinez scored a decisive goal, leading Inter Milan to a 1-0 victory over Napoli on Monday in Riyadh, securing the Italian Super Cup in football for the third consecutive time, and the eighth in its history.
Inter Milan, last season’s cup winner, seemed headed for a penalty shootout in the first-ever Super Cup final featuring four teams instead of the usual league and cup champions, especially after failing to score despite Napoli, the league champions, being reduced to ten men in the last half-hour due to the dismissal of Argentinian Giovanni Simeone.
However, Lautaro snatched the goal in the first minute of added time, making his coach Simone Inzaghi the first to win the Super Cup five times (twice with Lazio and three times with Inter) and placing Inter Milan as the second team to win it three times in a row after their fierce rivals AC Milan (1992, 1993, and 1994).
Inter and Napoli reached the final with significant 3-0 victories over Lazio and Fiorentina respectively.
The Super Cup win gives Inter Milan the necessary boost to continue their promising season, aiming to emerge victorious in their local league battle with Juventus, which took the lead by winning 3-0 against Lecce on Sunday, capitalizing on Inter’s absence.
Inter also reached the round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League, where they will face Spanish team Atletico Madrid on February 20th.
In 2022, Inter Milan triumphed over AC Milan with a commanding 3-0 win in the Super Cup held at Riyadh. This match was marked by impressive performances, including a brilliant third goal by Lautaro Martinez, underlining Inter’s dominance over their local rivals. This victory was their seventh Super Cup win, and it followed their win against Juventus in the previous year’s competition.
The 2021 Super Cup, played in January 2022 at San Siro, saw Inter Milan overcoming Juventus in a dramatic match that ended 2-1 in favor of Inter. The match, which was dominated by Inter, was decided in extra time, with Alexis Sanchez scoring the winning goal in the final moments.
