Serie A: Inter Coach Chivu Sent Off As Atalanta Held Leaders

Inter Milan inadvertently aided AC Milan’s bid for the Serie A title as a late equaliser from Atalanta secured a 1-1 draw, marking Inter’s second consecutive match without a win.

Pio Esposito put Inter ahead at San Siro with a low strike in the 26th minute, which slipped under the arm of Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi. The visitors were incensed that the goal was allowed to stand, claiming a foul by Inter full-back Denzel Dumfries in the lead-up.

However, Dumfries was left frustrated himself when Nikola Krstovic netted an equaliser in the 82nd minute. Dumfries went down under pressure from Atalanta substitute Kamaldeen Sulemana, whose shot was parried by keeper Yann Sommer into the path of Krstovic, who made no mistake in finishing.

The video assistant referee (VAR) did not disallow the goal, much to the dismay of the home side, leading to Inter boss Cristian Chivu being sent off for his protests.

The situation worsened for Inter moments later when VAR denied what they believed was a clear penalty following a challenge by Giorgio Scalvini on Davide Frattesi.

After being eliminated from the Champions League play-off round by Bodo/Glimt, Chivu’s side has had a challenging month, failing to score in consecutive matches and seeing their 15-match unbeaten league run come to an end at the hands of city rivals AC Milan last weekend.

Inter managed 16 shots—11 of which were inside the penalty area—but were wasteful in the absence of their injured top scorer, Lautaro Martinez.

Despite the draw, Inter remain eight points clear at the top of the table, although AC Milan could reduce the gap to five points with a win against Lazio on Sunday, leaving nine matches to play.

Atalanta’s failure to secure victory against Inter extends their winless streak to 15 consecutive Serie A matches, leaving them in seventh place, four points adrift of Como in fourth.