This did not go to plan.
A well executed set-piece routine is one of the most pleasing things to watch in football. When you can tell a side have been working on every single tiny move on the training ground, all coming together at the right moment to produce a piece of play that bamboozles their opponents, there are few better sights in the game.
However, when they go wrong, there are few more embarrassing sights. Like a house of cards, when one component is askew, it all falls apart.
That's what happened to Inter Milan on Thursday night, whose attempt at a set-piece routine fell flat on its face.
Inter were leading 1-0 against Rapid Wien up in added time of the first leg of their Europa League knockout tie. The Serie A side had a free kick from considerable distance. Ivan Perisic stood over the ball, with his teammate Antonio Candreva ready to have a shot at goal after Perisic had laid it off.
Of course, the home side had a player ready to pounce as soon as the free kick was taken by Perisic. In an attempt to deceive the Rapid Wien player, Perisic touched the ball earlier than everyone expected, particularly Candreva, who was not ready at all.
This resulted in Candreva not reaching the ball before the opposition player gave it a big old twat up the pitch.
In the end, Inter held onto seal a 1-0 first leg win, so it wasn't all bad for them.
https://twitter.com/MrTriplete81/status/1096136029025824768
