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Football

21st Feb 2021

Romelu Lukaku masterclass sees him get last laugh on Zlatan

Inter extended their lead at the top to four points with an emphatic derby win over AC Milan, as Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez ran riot

Reuben Pinder

But, I thought Lukaku didn’t perform in big games?

Inter Milan cruised to a 3-0 victory over their San Siro co-tenants AC Milan on Sunday afternoon, keeping their place at the top of the Serie A table.

Lautaro Martinez opened the scoring after just five minutes, nodding in a perfectly weighted cross from his strike partner Romelu Lukaku.

Martinez then doubled Inter’s lead just short of the hour mark, rounding off a glorious counter-attack that Christian Eriksen was at the centre of.

The Dane has struggled for minutes this season but Antonio Conte put his faith in the former Spurs man to make an impact in the derby and make an impact he did. The impeccable timing of his pass to the onrushing Ivan Perisic, allowing Martinez to make a run inside bamboozled Milan’s defenders, who were helpless to stop the Argentine from slotting the ball past Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Lukaku then reminded everyone – especially Zlatan Ibrahimovic – why Inter paid so much money for him. The pair clashed earlier in the season, but the Belgian let his football do the talking today and had the last laugh.

The mural of Romelu Lukaku of FC Internazionale and Zlatan Ibrahimovic of AC Milan is pictured outside the Giuseppe Meazza stadium. (Photo by Claudio Villa./Getty Images)

Picking up the ball on the half-way line, support was in short supply. But the Belgian din’t need it, as he turned, and accelerated towards’ Milan’s terrified backline.

Lukaku burst into space with the ball on his favoured left foot and unleashed a low, powerful shot into the bottom corner to make it 3-0. Accusations of him being a flat-track-bully should surely now be put to bed.

This victory keeps Inter top, extending their lead on Milan to four points.

 

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