Inter Defeats Juventus 2-1 in Thrilling Perth Derby d’Italia

Inter 2–1 Juventus
(Dimarco 20, Diouf 63; Conceição 85)

Under the floodlights in Perth, half a world away from San Siro and the Allianz Stadium, Inter and Juventus served up a summer Derby d’Italia that looked nothing like a gentle pre-season run-out. It was sharp, occasionally scruffy, and full of subplots, from debuts to defensive lapses. Inter, in the end, handled it better.

Dimarco pounces, Juve slow to wake

Juventus arrived buoyed by a 1-0 win over Chelsea and handed Kenan Yildiz his first start of the summer. Inter, fresh from being held 1-1 by Milan in an Australian Derby della Madonnina, were without Petar Sucic, who had flown back to Europe for the birth of his child.

The early rhythm belonged to the Nerazzurri. Ange-Yoan Bonny tore away down the left, leaving Wes McKennie trailing. His low ball across the box wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t need to be. Federico Dimarco met it with a scuffed first-time effort from 12 yards, the contact far from clean, the outcome ruthless. The ball crept into the far bottom corner and Inter had control on the scoreboard, if not yet in performance.

Inter’s set-piece threat kept Juventus pinned back. Hakan Calhanoglu forced Michele Di Gregorio into action with a vicious, dipping free-kick, then Henrikh Mkhitaryan did the same, each effort asking awkward questions of the new Juventus goalkeeper.

Only then did Juve stir. A clever pass from Douglas Luiz sliced Inter open and sent Andrea Cambiaso clear, but instead of pulling the trigger he chose to cut the ball back and the chance fizzled out. Moments later Yildiz drilled narrowly wide, a reminder that this was not going to be a procession for Simone Inzaghi’s side.

Spalletti rings the changes, Inter punish errors

Half-time brought a flurry of changes from Luciano Spalletti and with them a new layer of intrigue. Randal Kolo Muani and Kerim Alajbegovic stepped on for their Juventus debuts, fresh legs and fresh ideas in attack.

The script, though, still belonged to Inter.

The second goal was a gift wrapped in black and white. Andy Diouf drove into the yawning gap between Juan Cabal and Teun Koopmeiners, a chasm the Juventus back line will not enjoy revisiting in the video room. His angled drive from the left should have been meat and drink for Di Gregorio at the near post. Instead, the goalkeeper fumbled comically, the ball squirming under his body and over the line. Diouf had started and finished a move that sliced straight through Juve’s defensive shape.

Inter should have killed the contest outright soon after. Jamal Iddrissou rolled a simple ball across the box, Alajbegovic’s cross only glanced off the head of Kolo Muani, and Matteo Lavelli, totally unmarked, ballooned his finish over an open goal. It was the sort of miss that keeps a youngster awake at night.

Juventus, to their credit, refused to fold. Alajbegovic drove into the area with purpose but, again, chose the pass instead of the shot, the hesitation costing him. The game felt as if it was drifting towards a comfortable Inter win. Then Francisco Conceição changed the temperature.

Conceição ignites late fightback

With five minutes to play, Conceição combined sharply with Fabio Miretti down the left, burst into space and went for power. His low strike ripped through Josep Martinez’s legs, a clean, aggressive finish that finally gave the travelling Juventus support something to shout about.

Suddenly, Inter were hanging on.

Almost straight from the restart, Juventus came again. Kolo Muani dropped off the front line and slipped Alajbegovic into space, the debutant forcing Martinez into a save as the equaliser beckoned. The pressure was now all black and white.

Then came the flashpoint. Kolo Muani took a pass with his back to goal around 10 yards out, tried to spin, and tangled with Leonardo Bovio. The forward went down, arms spread in appeal, convinced he had earned a penalty. The referee waved play on. No whistle, no lifeline.

Inter saw out the final minutes, clinging to their one-goal advantage as Juventus pushed high and threw bodies forward. When the whistle went, the Nerazzurri had their 2-1 win, Dimarco and Diouf the match-winners on a night that was supposed to be about fitness but ended up feeling far more serious.

For Inter, it was another confident step in an Australian tour that has already included a derby with Milan. For Juventus, the story was more complicated: defensive lapses, a goalkeeper’s nightmare moment, but also glimpses of something exciting in Kolo Muani, Alajbegovic and the relentless directness of Conceição.

If this is the tone of their “friendly” meetings in August, what will be left when the Derby d’Italia returns to the real stage?