Three takeaways from Inter 1-0 AS Roma: Thuram steals the show, uninspired Roma midfield
Inter secured a 1-0 win over AS Roma at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on Serie A Matchday 10 to ensure that they end the weekend at the top of the table.
It was a game that the Nerazzurri always had dominance in, but it took them until the final 10 minutes to actually make the breakthrough. It was Marcus Thuram who scored, taking the attention away from Romelu Lukaku who got a particularly hostile reception from the Inter fans.
Roma were uninspired and can have no complaints about the result, one that leaves them at risk of soon being overtaken by Lazio.
Total lack of spark in AS Roma's midfield
Much was made in the 2022/23 season about how Roma failed to produce any excitement when Paulo Dybala was on the pitch. He was by far the most effective creative player in the team, some may say he was the only creative player.
With Renato Sanches and Houssem Aouar arriving in the summer, there was a feeling and early signs that more than just Dybala could create in this team. With both Dybala and Sanches out injured for this trip to Inter, the fact that Aouar was left on the bench at the Meazza meant that the midfield looked far too functional.
A three of Edoardo Bove, Bryan Cristante and Leandro Paredes is unlikely to carve teams like Inter apart and it meant that El Shaarawy and Romelu Lukaku were extremely isolated.
Thuram grabs the spotlight from Lukaku
On a night when all of the pre-match focus was on Romelu Lukaku and the whistling from the home fans towards their former hero, it was his replacement that grabbed the headlines.
Thanks to the aforementioned lack of spark in Roma's midfield, it was a game in which the whistles were barely heard. Lukaku was non-existent, whilst Thuram carried a threat throughout, even if Inter were not tearing Roma apart.
They certainly deserved to win the game, though, and it was Thuram who was most alive in the box with 10 minutes to play when Federico Dimarco put in a superb low cross which the Frenchman converted. He has been superb for Inter this season and he is the striker that Inter fans should be thinking about on the way home, rather than Lukaku.
Gulf between Inter and AS Roma is clear
The way that Roma approached this game at the Meazza, and the way that Inter managed to keep their cool and find the winner, exhibits why one side is leading the title race and the other is not in the conversation.
Inter were the dominant team from the outset and whilst it certainly wasn't their best performance of the season, only one team was ever going to find the breakthrough and they knew they had the tools to get ahead.
Roma set up with the hope of getting a point or perhaps snatching an incredibly fortunate and unlikely win. They were the underdogs and they played like it, meaning there can be no complaints that Thuram eventually found the winner.