Portuguese children on Halloween night ask for “Pao por Deus,” “Bread for God,” but the concept is the same: “Trick or treat.” Ruben Amorim had said it without shame: “We are aiming for the first and we want to win the derby.” He kept his promise, with the help of a Belgian youngster raised in Lisbon who knocked on Martinez’s door and, instead of asking for “Pao por Deus,” delivered a goal and two assists. A 'Devil' on the night of the witches. And so Milan, who risked slipping to 10 points behind, went to sleep in the Champions League zone, 4 points from the top. To say “trick and Scudetto,” just a few days after the home collapse against Bologna, would be exaggerated, but the emphatic 3-1 over the reigning champions is a victory worth much more than three points. It can provide the boost and the turning point, as happened with Pioli’s title-winning Milan. The unbeaten streak in derbies extends to 8. The Devil had not won four consecutive derbies since 1972-73. Numbers that bring further confidence. Besides Moreira, Rabiot was excellent, Maignan decisive, Pavlovic relentless. But the award for the best goes to Ruben Amorim, perfect in tactics and psychology. It was not easy to lift Milan back up after the collapse against Bologna. Instead, Moreira became Mbangula.
Mitigating Circumstances
Inter, The judgment on Inter depends on the emergency. If Bonny and Pio, suffering from the flu, really were in no condition to play at the start, and Chivu’s tactical change was not a choice but a necessity, the mitigating circumstances are much more than generic. Because otherwise it would have been suicide: you do not remove the reference points from the most structured team in the world, especially in a derby. Chivu, with only one healthy striker, invented two attacking midfielders (Diouf, Sucic) behind Thuram, but the ball circulated strangely. But what about daring to use the young Lavelli without changing the formation? The mitigating circumstances do not prevent condemnation, because Inter came out sluggish, two goals down after 10 minutes, and never matched the competitive fury of the Rossoneri. The defensive mistakes on the first two goals and the free kick for the third, carelessly gifted by an unrecognizable Barella, perfectly tell the story of Inter’s spirit on Halloween. They fall after 19 league matches: it is not a tragedy. It happens. But perhaps it is a taboo, because the previous defeat was also a derby. They have not won one since April 22, 2024, as per Gazzetta dello Sport today.
Diavolo Moreira
If, to the physical emergency that forced tactical changes, we add a soft approach, typical of this Inter, who have fallen behind in 5 of their 9 league matches, but inconceivable in a derby, it explains why after 10 minutes they find themselves two goals down against a Milan side that, on the contrary, is burning with desire, with a devilish Moreira. The Belgian winger sets up Pulisic’s header in the 4th minute and, in the 10th, delivers a precisely measured low corner, perfected at Milanello, which, through a system of blocks, frees Rabiot for a beautiful delicate touch. On the eve of the match, we had identified Pulisic and Rabiot as the Halloween bogeymen, because they are extremely skilled at reading spaces and running into them. This is also why Chivu, having suffered too many transitions in previous matches (even in Venice), thought of using two attacking midfielders to strengthen the barrier in midfield, but it did not work. Also because you can use whatever tactics you want, but if you make marking mistakes (Bisseck) on Pulisic, and more than one on Rabiot’s goal, you concede. A deserved two-goal lead. The Rossoneri were extremely focused and organized in a fluid 4-2-3-1, with Diawara moving forward on the left during the build-up phase and ready to drop back to intercept Spence’s run. Inter two goals down, as against Roma, Napoli and Real Madrid. And, as in the previous cases, they try to wake up and fight back. And they seem to succeed, because they halve the deficit through Bastoni from a corner-kick move (22nd minute), force a miracle save from Maignan (33rd), accumulate 7 shots on target and 7 corners (against 1) and seem on the verge of equalizing. If Inter have the bad habit of starting sluggishly, Milan have the habit of losing steam after taking the lead: Juve, Sassuolo, Bologna... But just as the equalizer seems to be arriving, flying in on a broomstick, that devil Moreira invents another: a splendid curling free kick and 3-1 in the 43rd minute. The lightness, unbearable even for Kundera, with which Barella makes a mess of clearing the ball and gifts a free kick from the edge of the box, is the perfect symbol of today’s Inter. Milan, on the other hand: 3 shots, 3 goals. Clear?
Witches
Inter regain control of the game in the second half, set up camp in the Devil’s half, but always with a slowness bordering on resignation, which stands out, by contrast, against Pavlovic’s furious interceptions. The Nerazzurri’s first shot on target, in fact, arrives only in the 26th minute: a harmless aerial effort from Carlos Augusto. Immediately afterward, Chivu makes his first two substitutions: midfielders for midfielders. How useful two strikers and the real Dimarco would be... But it is not possible. In the 29th minute, hope seems to reopen because Guida, the one who does not referee Napoli so as not to ruin his stroll through Mergellina, sees a penalty for Inter. Only he does. In fact, VAR takes him by the ears. The weakened Bonny and Pio Esposito come on in the 36th minute, when the oxen have already escaped from the stable. In fact, a shot by Cisse in the 45th minute, the fourth of the entire Rossoneri night, threatens to become the fourth goal. The Nerazzurri’s 8 shots on target produced just one goal. Milan celebrate Halloween; Inter have seen only witches.
