October 16, 2021: Lazio Inter 3-1
A bitter return for Inzaghi
Lazio came from behind to beat Inter 3-1 in a dramatic encounter at the Olimpico, with Felipe Anderson’s controversial late goal turning the game on its head and Milinković-Savić sealing a memorable victory over Simone Inzaghi on his return to Rome.
The season so far
The planning of the 2021-22 season practically started only a few days after the end of the previous one. Simone Inzaghi, Claudio Lotito and Igli Tare met in the evening of May 23 to discuss the manager’s contract renewal.
By the very early hours of the 24th all was settled: Inzaghi would sign another contract with Lazio and was expected at the club headquarters the next morning. This is what he told his closest collaborators as well as a few players.
What was really happening? Apparently Inzaghi was buying time, faking a possible renewal with Lazio while at the same time negotiating a deal with Inter. On the morning of the 24th, Simone called Lotito to basically say “sorry, ain’t coming in this morning, gonna sign with Inter”.
A shock for Lazio who really did not expect to lose Inzaghi. Apparently Inzaghi and Tare had even spoken about the summer transfers. Everything had been agreed. Lazio had to start from scratch.
Lotito at this point had to decide what to do. So he chose change, drastic change, both in mentality and professionalism: in came Maurizio Sarri. This meant moving from the Inzaghi classic 3-5-2 formation to 4-3-3, a BIG change.
Lazio had budget problems and could not invest too much on new players: in came Mattia Zaccagni, Pedro, Toma Basic, Elsied Hysaj, Luka Romero and the return of Felipe Anderson. Senad Lulic and Marco Parolo did not have their contract extended and Lazio also said goodbye to Joaquin Correa and Felipe Caicedo.
After seven games Lazio were sixth with Juve Atalanta and Bologna. The had won the first two games against Empoli and Spezia, then lost in Milan and drawn with Cagliari at home and Torino away. They had then won the derby 3-2.
Today was the first time Simone Inzaghi returned to the Olimpico as an enemy.
The match: Saturday, October 16, 2021, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
After ten minutes, Felipe Anderson raced down the right wing and, almost on the byline, delivered a splendid ball to Pedro. The Spaniard immediately tried his luck, but Milan Škriniar blocked the shot. The ball fell to Lucas Leiva, who unleashed a powerful effort that flew over the crossbar.
Two minutes later, Nicolò Barella got ahead of Elseid Hysaj inside the box. The Albanian made the slightest contact from behind, and Barella went down as if he had been hit by a missile. A penalty was awarded, of course, and Ivan Perišić made no mistake from the spot.
The Biancocelesti reacted. In the 24th minute, Felipe Anderson again broke down the right and delivered another splendid cross, this time for Toma Bašić. Samir Handanović parried the midfielder's effort, and Škriniar scrambled the ball behind for a corner.
Pepe Reina was called into action in the 34th minute when Perišić tried his luck from outside the box. The Lazio goalkeeper produced a fine save.
In the 64th minute, Lazio equalised. From a corner, Patric headed towards goal, but Alessandro Bastoni stopped the ball with his hand. Another penalty, and Ciro Immobile made no mistake. It was 1-1.
In the 81st minute, controversy erupted. Federico Dimarco passed the ball to Lautaro Martínez and then went down following a collision with Lucas Leiva. Lautaro continued towards the box and, just outside it, tried a shot that Reina comfortably gathered.
The Lazio goalkeeper immediately released the ball to Sergej Milinković-Savić, who passed to Felipe Anderson on the right. The Brazilian surged forward before switching the play to Immobile on the opposite side. King Ciro entered the box and shot, Handanović parried, but Felipetto was perfectly placed to tap home the rebound and make it 2-1.
The Inter players were furious. They wanted Lazio to put the ball out of play because Dimarco was still down injured. But Inter had continued playing after the incident, with Lautaro even taking a shot at goal, so the Biancocelesti played on as well.
Denzel Dumfries confronted Felipe Anderson, and a furious exchange of pushing and shoving followed. Several players were booked, including Felipetto, although the Brazilian was clearly the main target of the Nerazzurri's anger.
In stoppage time, Lazio put the result beyond doubt. Luis Alberto took a free kick, and Milinković-Savić rose higher than Škriniar to head the ball into the net for 3-1.
A great win for Lazio, and not such a great return to the Olimpico for Simone Inzaghi.
Who played for Lazio
Reina, Marusic, Luiz Felipe, Patric, Hysaj (66' Lazzari), Milinkovic-Savic, Leiva (85' Cataldi), Basic (66' Luis Alberto), Felipe Anderson (85' Akpa Akpro), Immobile, Pedro (75' Zaccagni)
Manager: Sarri
Who played for Inter
Handanovic, Skriniar, de Vrij, Bastoni (67' Dumfries), Darmian, Barella (85' Calhanoglu), Brozovic, Gagliardini (67' Vecino), Dimarco, Perisic (67' Correa), Dzeko (75' Lautaro)
Substitutes: Radu, Cordaz, Ranocchia, Kolarov, D'Ambrosio, Satriano
Manager: S. Inzaghi
Referee: Irrati
Goals: 12' Perisic (pen), 64' Immobile (pen), 83' Felipe Anderson, 90+1' Milinkovic-Savic
What happened next
The season had started well but then became very inconsistent. The great wins against Roma and Inter were also followed by great collapses (Bologna, Verona, Napoli), completely incapable of finding any kind of happy medium.
Whereas from an attacking point of view the team were doing well, they were terrible defensively, from the goalkeeper to the central defenders but the midfield was also to blame, unable to give sufficient cover.
Some players adapted perfectly to the new system (Ciro Immobile was scoring more than ever, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic was having his best season at Lazio), others were having problems (Luis Alberto, Francesco Acerbi, Luiz Felipe, Manuel Lazzari). But Sarri did warn everybody that the first season was going to be a transitional one, and that it was preparatory for 2022-23.
The Europa League Group stage was determined by an incredible howler by Thomas Strakosha which cost Lazio the match against Galatasaray. This undermined the rest of the tournament as Lazio arrived second in their group and had to play Porto in the playoff.
Despite showing that potentially the Biancocelesti were the better team, they lost in Portugal 2-1 due to defensive errors and only managed to draw 2-2 at home.
In Coppa Italia, the Biancocelesti struggled at home against Udinese and only won in extra time. The quarter final, played a few days before the Bologna game, against Milan was a disaster with Lazio having another ioof their black outs. They lost 4-0 and were eliminated.
In Serie A, Europa League qualification was ultimately secured thanks to a last-minute equaliser in Turin against Juventus and the draw at home in the final game against Verona also clinched 6th place.
The player with most appearances was Felipe Anderson (48) and the top goal scorer was obviously Immobile with 32 goals. He was the top scorer in Serie A for the fourth time, the first Italian player ever to achieve such a feat.
Let’s talk about Lautaro Martinez
Lautaro Javier Martínez was born in Bahía Blanca, Argentina, on August 22, 1997.
Football was already part of his life from an early age. He began playing for local club Liniers before joining the Racing Club youth academy as a teenager. There, his potential quickly became apparent.
He made his first-team debut for Racing on November 1, 2015, shortly after his 18th birthday.
There was an appropriate twist to the story: he replaced former Inter striker Diego Milito during a match against Crucero del Norte.
A year later Martínez scored his first professional goal, against Huracán.
His breakthrough came during the 2016-17 season, when he scored nine goals in 28 appearances. The following campaign was even better. He scored 18 times in 28 appearances, including five goals in the Copa Libertadores, establishing himself as one of the most exciting young forwards in South America.
His performances also brought international recognition.
Martínez represented Argentina at Under-20 level and was the leading scorer at the 2017 South American Under-20 Championship with five goals. He also appeared at the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea.
The senior national team soon came calling.
On March 27, 2018, he made his Argentina debut against Spain, replacing Gonzalo Higuaín in a 6-1 defeat. It was hardly the dream beginning, but Martínez would soon become an important member of the Albiceleste.
In July 2018, Martínez joined Inter.
The Nerazzurri paid around €22.7 million for the 20-year-old, who signed a five-year contract.
His first season was one of adaptation. He scored six goals in Serie A, but the arrival of Antonio Conte the following summer changed everything.
Playing alongside Romelu Lukaku, Martínez developed rapidly.
The partnership became one of the most dangerous in Italian football and helped Inter reach the 2020 Europa League final. Although Sevilla won the final, Martínez had announced himself on the European stage.
His numbers continued to improve.
He scored 14 goals in 2019-20, 17 in the Scudetto-winning 2020-21 campaign and 21 in both 2021-22 and 2022-23. His greatest individual Serie A season came in 2023-24, when he scored 24 league goals as Inter won the championship.
That title was particularly significant because Martínez had evolved from promising young striker into the leader of Inter's attack.
He had also become captain.
Martínez's international career followed a similar path.
He was part of Argentina's squad that won the 2021 Copa América, ending a long wait for a major international trophy.
A year later came the ultimate prize.
At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Martínez was an important member of Lionel Scaloni's squad as Argentina became world champions. Although he did not score at the tournament, his contribution from the bench and in attack helped Argentina overcome France in one of the greatest World Cup finals ever played.
He subsequently became even more important for Argentina.
Martínez was part of the team that won the 2024 Copa América, scoring five goals and finishing as the tournament's leading scorer. His decisive moment came in the final against Colombia, when his extra-time goal secured another major trophy for Argentina.
By then, El Toro had become one of the leaders of the post-Messi generation, while still playing alongside the Argentine legend.
Back at Inter, Martínez continued to score.
The 2024-25 season brought 12 Serie A goals, while in 2025-26 he scored 17 league goals in 29 appearances and was named Serie A's Best Striker. He also helped Inter win another Scudetto and the Coppa Italia.
By May 2026, Martínez had reached 175 goals in 376 official appearances for Inter, overtaking Roberto Boninsegna to become the club's third-highest goalscorer behind Giuseppe Meazza and Alessandro Altobelli.
His trophy cabinet with Inter had also grown to three Serie A titles, three Coppa Italia trophies and three Supercoppa Italiana victories.
The 2026 World Cup provided another chapter.
Argentina entered the tournament as defending champions, and Martínez finally scored his first World Cup goal when he converted a penalty against Jordan in the group stage.
He then scored in the quarter-final against Switzerland and produced an even more dramatic contribution in the semi-final against England, heading Argentina's winning goal in the 92nd minute to send them into another World Cup final.
But he surprisingly did not play in the final which Argentina lost to Spain.
Despite the disappointment, he is still the captain of the probably strongest team in Serie A and Inter are clearly favourites for the 2026-27 title.
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