Inter Milan secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over Cremonese, thanks to goals from Lautaro Martinez and Piotr Zielinski, though the evening was marred by a frightening incident involving a firework striking Cremonese goalkeeper Emil Audero.
The Nerazzurri arrived at the match off the back of a 2-0 win against Borussia Dortmund in Germany on Wednesday, a result insufficient to prevent a Champions League play-off.
Injury troubles continued to pile up for Simone Inzaghi’s side, with Carlos Augusto joining Nicolò Barella, Hakan Calhanoglu, and Denzel Dumfries on the sidelines.
Cremonese, meanwhile, were depleted, with Tommaso Barbieri suspended and several key players,Martin Payero, Antonio Sanabria, Warren Bondo, Faris Moumbagna, and Michele Collocolo, injured, forcing Youssef Maleh straight into the starting XI.
Cremonese struggled to play out from the back early on, with Petar Sucic’s shot sailing over the bar and Lautaro Martinez sending a long-range effort wide.
Inter broke through when Martinez capitalized on a rare defensive lapse, heading in Federico Dimarco’s corner from close range for his 128th Serie A goal, which he celebrated with a special message for his daughter’s birthday.
Cremonese had their moments: Federico Ceccherini’s header from a corner went wide, and Yann Sommer rushed out to clear Federico Bonazzoli’s heavy touch before a dangerous counter could develop.
Davide Frattesi’s effort from a Dimarco cross also failed to test the Inter goalkeeper, but Piotr Zielinski made sure of the win with a stunning long-range strike that swerved past Audero, who struggled to get under the shot.
Bonazzoli tried to respond with a curling effort of his own, forcing Sommer into a smart save, but the match was overshadowed by a terrifying incident in the 50th minute. A firework was thrown into the penalty area, exploding dangerously close to Audero.
The goalkeeper was visibly shaken and suffered a burn mark on his leg but thankfully was able to continue after a brief delay.
Cremonese pressed late, with Alessio Zerbin testing Sommer from an angle and Marcus Thuram’s header failing to find the target. New signing Milan Djuric made his debut but could not connect properly with a cross from Giuseppe Pezzella.
In the dying moments, Zerbin’s free-kick was cleared only for a first-time strike to crash against the post, with Sommer ultimately smothering the rebound at Jamie Vardy’s feet.
Inter claimed the three points without further drama, leaving Cremonese still searching for a goal after three consecutive matches without scoring.
