Inter Milan wasted the opportunity to leapfrog rivals AC Milan at the top of the Serie A table. The Nerazzurri lost 2-1 to Bologna, squandering their game in hand. Simone Inzaghi’s side are currently two points behind their neighbours and arch–rivals with 12 to play for.
| # | Team | Matches played | Goal difference | Points |
| 1 | AC Milan | 34 | +30 | 74 |
| 2 | Inter Milan | 34 | +44 | 72 |
| 3 | Napoli | 34 | +31 | 67 |
Inter took the lead in the third minute of the match at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara – Ivan Perisic, the scorer of a goal entirely of his own making. The Croatian winger collected the ball by the touchline, came back inside, played a give-and-go with Nicolo Barella, and arrowed his shot past goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski to open the scoring.
While the Bologna custodian could do little to stop Perisic from hitting the net, the Pole did prevent his side from falling two behind just minutes later, making a save from Federico Dimarco’s long-range attempt. Lautaro Martinez, in sensational form recently, put his follow-up over the bar.
And Inzaghi’s men paid dearly for the wasted opportunity as, at the other end, former Inter striker Marko Arnautovic headed Bologna level from close range, converting an inswinging cross from Musa Barrow.
Inter retaliated but were lacking the cutting edge in the opposition box, as evidenced by right wingback Denzel Dumfries glancing his header over the bar, unmarked, at the back post.
The game flowed to-and-fro in the second half, with both sides desperate for points yet cautious not to commit too many errors. Ironically, it was one such cataclysmic blunder from the second-choice Inter goalkeeper Andrei Radu which allowed the hosts to steal away the points.
Attempting to sweep the ball away to his centre-back, the Romania international missed his kick, which, in turn, permitted Nicola Sansone to tap it in from close range.
Any late attempts from Inter proved fruitless, with Bologna holding on to their narrow lead for the final ten minutes – plus stoppage time.
