CESENA – Juan Jesus also spoke after Inter’s victory tonight: “We did what we had to to get the three points. I think we got slightly daunted after we scored; we wanted to sew the game up as soon as possible because we knew how hard it is to play here.

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t create much in the first half, but after the break I think we did very well. We wasted some chances, but all in all we put in a great performance and that’s the most important thing.

“The stadium was a fortress; their fans were urging them on and they kept trying until the very end. We stayed sharp throughout and the team did very well,” said Juan Jesus.

The Nerazzurri defender maintained that the team was already looking ahead to Wednesday’s match at the San Siro: “Now we’re focused solely on Sampdoria at home. We call on all the fans to support us – it will be vital to win because they currently have 16 points to our 12.”

CESENA – It was a one-goal victory for Inter over Cesena this evening, but the win was more resounding than the scoreline suggests. Walter Mazzarri started his post-match interview by underlining the importance of the victory: “It’s a win that can help us to turn a corner and recover from a difficult period.”

When asked if Cesena were hard done by to see their goalkeeper sent for an early bath, Mazzarri said: “I’m in a favour of a change to the rules on goalkeeper sending offs in cases like Leali’s today. The letter of the law says it’s a red card, but perhaps the basic principle needs modifying.

“In regard to my team, I really appreciated their will to win today. Having said that, we’ll need to go back and look at a number of things. We wasted too many counter-attacks and gave away too many fouls in crucial areas of the pitch. Perhaps we were a bit naïve in that respect. We’ll take the three points and work on being more clinical,” said Mazzarri.

“We spurned a lot of counter-attacking opportunities; we rushed them. You could see that we were under pressure and lacking composure in the final third. We need to relax more. We could’ve sewn the game up and saved ourselves the jitters in the closing stages where anything can happen, really. In terms of our peformance, it seemed like we wanted to walk the ball into the back of the net. We’ve got players who can shoot from distance and they should be doing that,” continued the Inter coach.

Asked about Palacio, Mazzarri replied: “As soon as he’s back to full fitness, you’ll see the best of him.” The Nerazzurri manager was also quizzed on his decision not to start Nemanja Vidic: “I left him on the bench as part of a normal rotation policy – the tempo of the game is getting faster and faster; it’s played at 100mph. Rotation is necessary because if you can’t get to the ball first, there can be problems.

“Campagnaro is getting back up to full speed; he’s been injured and I’ve not been able to call on him. He’s only been back for a short time and I decided to put my faith in him. He’s an important player who I’ve had with me for many years; I think a great deal of him,” he said.

Mazzarri was also asked whether it had been a difficult week due to the upheaval at board level. “When I arrived at Inter, things changed. Moratti wanted me here and I got on well with him. I’m a very important employee of this club, but ultimately only an employee. My intention was not to disrespect Moratti; I just wanted to say that club issues should be solved at club level. I already talked about this yesterday in the press conference and have nothing more to add,” concluded Mazzarri. 

CESENA – After Cesena v Inter, Mateo Kovacic gave a brief interview to Inter Channel. He began on the topic of the three points, but then also provided a bit of match analysis. 

“We made a few mistakes, it has to be said,” began the midfielder. “We played better when it was 11 against 11. We need to kill off the game as soon as possible. My final ball was also lacking, although we were perfect outside the box.

“The important thing was to win. Now we

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CESENA – Three points earned in a balanced game, and one that Inter faced with grit and determination. It was the same approach Nerazzurri fans had witnessed against Napoli, but this time a victory was achieved. Just as everyone had hoped for. 

The very beginning of the match saw both teams sizing each other up before Garritano’s high shot broke the ice after three minutes. The Nerazzurri responded immediately when Obi sent a dangerous cross to Dodo on the left flank; Leali produced a fine save to deny the Brazilian, although Mazzoleni had whistled the play dead. Then at the other end an alert Dodo snuffed out an attack from Marilungo. 

After some excellent individual play, Hernanes picked out Palacio. The Argentine striker found himself one-on-one with Leali before the Cesena keeper brought him down. There was no doubt for Mazzoleni: penalty. Icardi placed the ball on the spot before sending Agliardi the wrong way, putting Inter ahead 1-0 on 31 minutes. The hosts did not let their heads drop, however, and Cascione nearly found the equaliser with a volley that sailed just high. Just before the half-time whistle Palacio thought he had the Nerazzurri’s second, only to see the goal correctly disallowed for offside.  
 
The second half began and fans saw a much more open game for both sides. Obi in particular was enjoying the space available to him; his cross reached Hernanes who then found Icardi, but the final shot was just off target. In the 50th minute Hernanes ran at De Feudis before seeing his right-footer go inches wide. Inter were ramping up the pressure in search of their second goal: first through Kovacic, who missed with a side-footed effort from Hernanes’ pass; then through Mbaye (subbed on for Obi), with an off-target attempt from distance. 

Cesena recovered and then tried to react. Cascione forced Handanovic into a miracle save with his shot in what proved to be a decisive moment in the game. From distance, Hernanes again tested Agliardi who blocked the ball but could not hold it; Icardi swooped down on the rebound but shot well over the crossbar. Inter remained focused in defence, leaving a 10-man Cesena side exhausted. The game then ended 0-1 with the Nerazzurri claiming three valuable points and their thoughts now switching to their next opponent: Sampdoria.

 
Cesena 0-1 Inter (HT: 0-1) 

Scorer: Icardi 32.

Cesena: 1 Leali; 25 Capelli, 14 Volta, 6 Lucchini, 33 Renzetti; 34 Cascione, 8 De Feudis, 5 Giorgi (Rodriguez 75); 61 Garritano (Agliardi 31); 18 Djuric (Hugo Almeida 64), 89 Marilungo.
Unused subs: 2 Nica, 3 Mazzotta, 7 Carbonero, 15 Krajnc, 17 Magnusson, 19 Succi, 24 Perico, 77 Ze Eduardo, 81 Bressan.
Coach: Pierpaolo Bisoli.

Inter: 1 Handanovic; 14 Campagnaro, 23 Ranocchia, 5 Juan Jesus; 20 Obi (Mbaye 69), 88 Hernanes, 18 Medel, 10 Kovacic, 22 Dodo; 8 Palacio, 9 Icardi.
Unused subs: 30 Carrizo, 46 Berni, 6 Andreolli, 15 Vidic, 17 Kuzmanovic, 28 Puscas, 29 Camara, 44 Krhin, 97 Bonazzoli.
Coach: Walter Mazzarri.

Referee: Paolo Silvio Mazzoleni (Bergamo).

Booked: Garritano 14, Giorgi 37, Campagnaro 53, Volta 61, Rodriguez 86, Cascione 89.
Sent off: Leali 31.
Added time: 2 + 3 minutes.