Lautaro Martínez Double Ensures Inter Milan in Pursuit of Frontrunners

Inter forward Lautaro Martínez scored a second-half brace to secure his team a 2-0 win at Pisa, keeping the away side firmly involved in the Italian league title race despite a somewhat shaky performance.

Standings Update

Led by manager Cristian Chivu, Inter now are placed in third position in the table with 27 points, tied with runner-up Roma and only one point adrift of table-toppers Milan. Meanwhile, Pisa hold the third bottom spot with 10 points.

Match Recap

Inter arrived in Tuscany looking to get back on track after suffering a loss to rivals by Milan last weekend, followed by a Champions League defeat at Atlético Madrid. Nonetheless, they were made to battle throughout by newly-promoted Pisa. The hosts created numerous chances, but a efficient Inter broke the deadlock in the 69th minute when Argentinian Martínez smacked a one-time shot into the top of the net. The forward then finished from point-blank seven minutes from time.

Inter’s capacity to convert even with difficult circumstances was decisive in securing the victory.

Additional European Action

In Spain, the Basque side mounted a thrilling fightback from 2-0 down to equalize at home against Villarreal, only to lose to a late strike five minutes into added time. The visitors’ goals came from Ayoze Pérez just after the half-hour mark and Alberto Moleiro in the 57th minute, but Carlos Soler quickly pulled one back and Ander Barrenetxea equalised three minutes from time. However, Moleiro had the final say late in added time.

In the late La Liga match, Real Madrid travel to Girona requiring a victory to return to the summit above Barcelona, who secured a 3-1 triumph over Alavés on Saturday.

• Inter stay in tight contention for the Italian title.
• Martínez demonstrated his worth with a match-winning performance.
• The battle for first continues with several teams in the mix.