Primavera, Inter 3 - 1 Empoli. Topalovic, Alexiou and Lavelli ensured victory for the Nerazzurri

It ended 3-1 at the Konami Youth Development Centre. Zanchetta's Inter won against Empoli, on Matchday 9 of the championship. It all happened in the second half: Topalovic unblocked the result with a quick tap-in, then Alexiou, in the 89th minute, scored the second goal for the Nerazzurri. In the added time Empoli tried to catch up with Moray in the 91st minute, but Lavelli sealed the final 3-1 result in the 95th minute. With this victory Inter momentarily climbed to fifth place with 15 points.

The first half began immediately with a big threat for Inter: after 4 minutes of play the first opportunity of the match came at the feet of Pereira: the striker found some free space, kicked powerfully, but did not find the net. In the 16th minute it was Cocchi who put an inviting ball into the middle: Spinacce with a quick tap-in that hit the post, and on the rebound De Pieri attempted a left-footed shot, but the ball was just wide. A golden opportunity for the Nerazzurri. The visitors responded shortly afterwards with Campaniello, who made his mark with a breakaway on the right: he moved to the centre and attempted a shot from the edge of the box, but the ball went wide. Calligaris was also a major factor, decisive in the 26th minute when Pereira had a dangerous attempt from outside the box, which was neutralised by the Nerazzurri goalkeeper. In the 35th minute it was again De Pieri who tried with a venomous left-footer from the edge of the area, but the Empoli goalkeeper was quick to react and deflect it into a corner.

The second half saw Inter playing with more determination. In the 50th minute the ever-present De Pieri went deep, skipped past an opponent at speed and delivered a cross, but the Empoli goalkeeper managed to block the ball. The Nerazzurri kept the ball in their possession and in the 60th minute they took the lead thanks to a sequence triggered by De Pieri and ended by Topalovic's winning tap-in, after a series of deflections in the area. After the advantage Zanchetta's team was able to manage the game, conceding very little to the Empolese. In the 67th minute Trdan shot from the distance, with the ball going high over the crossbar. Inter tried to unleash De Pieri who entered the area, but he did not quite manage to finish from an excellent position. In the 89th minute Inter found the second goal with Alexiou, who jumped higher than anyone after Zanchetta's perfect corner. The added time of five minutes was lively to say the least: first Empoli reduced the deficit thanks to Moray's goal when he found a beautiful drive from the edge of the box, then in the 95th minute Quieto set up Lavelli who entered the box and scored the final goal at close-range, giving us the final 3-1 result.

INTER 3-1 EMPOLI | MATCH INFO

Goals: 60' Topalovic (I), 89' Alexiou( I), 91' Moray (E), 95' Lavelli (I).

INTER (4-3-3): 1 Calligaris; 2 Aidoo (19 Della Mora 65'), 24 Re Cecconi, 5 Alexiou, 3 Cocchi; 16 Venturini (8 Zarate 65'), 4 Zanchetta, 29 Topalovic; 30 De Pieri, 11 Spinaccè (9 Lavelli 79'), 10 Quieto. Unused Subs: 12 Taho, 21 Zamarian, 6 Maye, 13 Kangasniemi, 17 Motta, 22 Tigani, 25 Zouin, 31 El Mahboubi. Coach: Andrea Zanchetta.

EMPOLI (3-5-2): 52 Versari (43 Poggiolini 82'); 91 Rugani, 33 Mannelli, 2 Moray; 18 Lauricella, 8 Bacciardi (21 Trdan 67'), 27 Matteazzi (10 Cesari 67'), 4 Bacci (96 Orlandi 79'), 3 Majdandzic; 99 Pereira (11 Monaco 67'), 89 Campaniello. Unused Subs: 6 Asmussen, 9 Akpa-Chukwu, 15 Falcusan, 17 Blazic, 35 Tavernini, 97 Olivieri. Coach: Alessandro Birindelli.

Booked: Alexiou (I).

Referee: Scribani. Assistants: Poli-Martinelli

MATCH REPORT

90‘+5’ FT: Inter 3-1 Empoli.

90‘+5’ GOOOOOOOALL INTER! Quieto unleashes Lavelli well from an excellent position and Lavelli finds the net.

90‘+1’ GOAL Empoli. Moray reduces the deficit from the edge of the box.

90' Five minutes of added time.

89' GOOOOOOALLL INTER! Alexiou's header makes it 2-0 after a perfect corner from Zanchetta.

75' De Pieri accelerates, enters the area but fails to finish from an excellent position.

67' Trdan tries from distance, but the ball goes high.

60' GOOOOOOALL INTER! Winning tap-in by Topalovic after confusion in the box triggered by De Pieri.

50' De Pieri once more, getting past an opponent and delivering a cross, only for the Empolese goalkeeper to block it.

46' The second half begins.

FIRST HALF

45' End of first half. Inter 0-0 Empoli.

35' De Pieri again: the Nerazzurri striker lets loose a venomous left-footer from the edge of the penalty area that the Empoli keeper deflects for a corner.

26' Calligaris makes an excellent save on Pereira's powerful attempt from the edge of the box.

23' Campaniello escapes down the right flank and shoots from the edge of the box.

16' Cocchi puts in a cross, the ball reaches Spinacce who hits the post, then De Pieri on reboun d, but the shot ends up off target. Great chance for the Nerazzurri.

4' Pereira misses by inches.

1' Kick-Off: forza ragazzi!