I. Perišić has scored a goal for Inter Milan! Assist by M. Brozović.
It was Brozovic who made life easy for Perisic with his poked pass, but once again the Cagliari defence should have closed him down quicker.
GOAL! Perisic wraps up the win! The Croatian wins a free kick that's poked back to him, allowing the winger to unleash a thumping low shot that bounces past Cragno and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net.
88'
Just a couple of minutes to go until Inter pick up a win that will send them up to third place in the Serie A table. They've comfortably managed to get the better of Cagliari, who struggled all evening to deal with the determined Nerazzurri.
86'
Almost a fourth for Inter! The corner is curled towards the near post and finds Perisic, who rises well and forces Cragno into making a decent one-handed save with a glancing header.
85'
No penalty! The referee views a replay of the incident and only awards a corner to Inter. That seems to be a fair decision, as Andreolli was only a couple of yards away when the ball smashes his arm.
84'
After initially looking as if he wasn't interested in Inter's penalty claims, the referee has now decided to check with VAR. What will he give?
83'
A. Ranocchia enters the game and replaces Miranda.
Ranocchia has come on to replace Joao Miranda in a late change for the hosts.
82'
Candreva is the latest player to unleash a chance on goal after latching onto a good pass from Perisic, but his effort is closed down and blocked by Andreolli. Candreva immediately screams for a penalty, but it's not given by the referee.
80'
Perisic bursts through the middle of the pitch after too much space opens up for the Croatian. He then tries to pull off a one-two with Icardi, but the striker's pass into the box can't quite pick out the marauding winger and is blasted away.
78'
Valero holds up the ball deep inside the Cagliari half of the pitch at the end of another good move by Inter. He then sets up Joao Cancelo to cross, but the Portuguese's ball into the box is slightly underhit and easily cleared by Castan.
76'
A. Candreva enters the game and replaces Y. Karamoh.
Karamoh receives a rousing round of applause from the Inter fans as he's replaced by Candreva. He really impressed tonight.
Minute
Description
75'
Almost a costly mistake by Cragno! The goalkeeper charges out and tries to meet a looping cross, but he completely misreads it and allows the ball to find the head of Icardi. The striker can't take advantage of the error, though, sending his effort wide of the near post.
74'
F. Caligara enters the game and replaces A. Cossu.
Cagliari have made their third and final switch, with Cossu making way for 18-year-old Caligara.
73'
Another opportunity for Karamoh! Perisic holds up the ball on the edge of the Cagliari box before linking up well with Karamoh. The youngster then unleashes a first-time shot, but it's well saved by Cragno at the near post.
71'
Karamoh showcases impressive skill once again as he bursts down the left flank and towards the penalty area. He then spins and tries to set up Perisic, but his pass towards the winger is slightly mishit and can't quite set him up to shoot.
69'
Cagliari are eventually able to win the ball back after a lengthy period on the back foot, but once again they're unable to do anything with it when pushing forward and Inter easily hold on. Handanovic is yet to make a single save today.
67'
It's all Inter at the moment as they comfortably hold onto the ball inside the Cagliari half of the pitch. The visitors have dropped incredibly deep as they try to avoid falling any further behind.
65'
Joao Cancelo goes close! Karamoh bursts down the right wing and does well to win the home side a corner. It's sent short and worked over to Joao Cancelo, who unleashes a 25-yard strike that sails just over the top of the crossbar.
63'
M. Brozović gets yellow.
Brozovic flies into Giannetti from behind and catches the forward with a mistimed, cynical challenge, leaving the referee with no choice but to book him.
62'
Perisic sprints down the left flank and heads towards the byline before cutting a pass back to Icardi, but the winger ends up holding onto the ball for slightly too long and runs it a yard or so out of play.
60'
M. Brozović has scored a goal for Inter Milan!
It looked as if the opportunity had come to nothing when Icardi was closed down by Andreolli, but he did well to keep the move going before perfectly picking out Brozovic.
GOAL! Brozovic makes it 3-0! A curling cross picks out Icardi, but the striker can't quite get the better of Andreolli and has to poke the ball back to Brozovic. The Croatian then side-foots a delightful strike past Cragno and into the right-hand corner of the net to all but wrap up the win for Inter.
58'
N. Giannetti gets yellow.
Ouch! Cagliari work the ball into the box once again and almost carve out a chance on goal, but Giannetti totally misses the ball and ends up catching Skriniar on the side of the head with his attempted overhead kick. He's not quite Cristiano Ronaldo...
57'
Giannetti does well to skip down the right wing and past Karamoh before crossing, but Joao Miranda is there to head the ball behind for a corner that is underhit and easily dealt with by the home side.
55'
Cagliari are starting to push further forward since going 2-0 down, but they're still struggling to see much of the ball inside the final third of the pitch. Inter are defending well and denying their opponents much space to work in.
53'
C. Lykogiannis enters the game and replaces S. Padoin.
The visitors have made another change, with Lykogiannis coming on to take the place of Padoin.
52'
Cagliari win themselves a free-kick midway inside the hosts' half of the pitch and finally force the Inter defence into doing something, but it's poorly executed and fails to result in a chance on goal.
50'
P. Faragò enters the game and replaces M. Sau.
Cagliari have made their first change of the night, with Sau making way for Farago.
49'
M. Icardi has scored a goal for Inter Milan! Assist by Rafinha.
Rafinha did well to control the ball and make sure it could find Icardi, but Cagliari won't be at all happy with their defending there. Andreolli and Castan were out-muscled far too easily.
GOAL! Inter have doubled their lead! A clever pass is played into the heart of the Cagliari box and picks out Rafinha, who knocks the ball back to Icardi and sets up the striker to blast in his 25th league goal of the season. That goal has been a long time coming, and it's finally arrived!
48'
Joao Cancelo twists and turns deep down the right wing as Inter enjoy a decent start to the second half, but his eventual cross is deflected high into the air and straight to Cragno in the middle of the goal.
46'
We're underway once again!
45' +3
And now Icardi goes close! This time it's Perisic who sends an excellent pass into the box and towards Icardi, who stretches but can't quite reach the ball in front of goal.
45' +1
Karamoh scores, but it won't count! A looping cross from Rafinha curls into the heart of the penalty area and picks out Icardi, who nods the ball over to the far post. Karamoh is all alone and easily beats Cragno, but he's in an offside position as he does so and the linesman's flag is quickly raised.
45'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be three minutes of added time.
44'
Inter keep bossing possession as they desperately try to double their lead before the half-time break. Joao Cancelo darts down the right flank and attempts to latch onto a pass from Brozovic, but it's poorly hit by the Croatian and bounces out for a throw-in.
42'
Vital block by Castan! Great link-up play between Rafinha and Perisic sets up the latter to poke a pass back to Icardi. The striker quickly shoots and looks set to test to test Cragno, but Castan is there to deflect the ball over the crossbar with an excellent interception.
40'
Icardi is caught late by Andreolli, sending the striker crashing to the ground. The Inter players and fans aren't at all happy with the challenge and want him to be booked, but the referee doesn't agree and instead gives the defender a final warning.
38'
Inter immediately push forward from the restart and almost carve out another good chance. Icardi storms into the penalty area and pokes a pass across the face of goal, where Karamoh tries to latch onto the ball but isn't quite able to do so.
37'
Borja Valero enters the game and replaces R. Gagliardini.
Gagliardini is stretchered off the pitch to be replaced by Valero. At this stage of the season, that injury could prove to end the midfielder's campaign.
35'
This doesn't look good for Gagliardini, who has gone down off the ball and seems to be in real pain. That should be the end of his night, with Valero getting ready over on the touchline.
33'
Karamoh is left in a pocket of space just outside of the Cagliari penalty area and quickly gets a shot away, but it's sent too near to Cragno and is easily collected by the goalkeeper.
31'
Cagliari are starting to see more of the ball as the pace slows down, but they're still struggling to do much with it. Handanovic has been a mere spectator so far, with the Inter back line rarely being called into action.
29'
Thankfully, Karamoh is able to get back to his feet and rejoin the action after a quick look-over from the Inter medical team.
28'
Ouch! A lovely pass from Brozovic flies through the Cagliari back line and towards Perisic. The Croatian keeps the ball in play and chips a cross over to the far post, where Karamoh tries to latch onto the ball but is clattered into by Cragno before smashing the woodwork with his shoulder. That looked painful!
26'
Impressive play by Cagliari looks as if it might result in a first opportunity on goal for the visitors, but a poor pass from Ceter fails to find Ionita over on the right flank and rolls out for a throw-in.
24'
Karamoh gets himself into a good position deep down the right wing and tries to poke the ball through to Rafinha on the edge of the box. He can't quite find the Brazilian, though, and Cagliari are just about able to hold on once again.
22'
Great save by Cragno! Space opens up once again as Inter hit Cagliari on another excellent attack. This time it's Perisic who breaks into the penalty area and sets up Rafinha, but Cragno gets down low to deny the on-loan midfielder with an excellent diving stop.
21'
Karamoh hits the crossbar! Icardi easily out-muscles Andreolli as he barges his way down the left flank and picks out D'Ambrosio. The full-back then puts the ball on a plate for Karamoh, who shoots from the middle of the box but can only clip the top of the crossbar.
19'
A clever throw-in is sent into the Cagliari penalty area and towards Icardi. The striker meets it well and flicks the ball back to Rafinha, but the Brazilian can't quite meet the ball and is denied the opportunity to shoot.
17'
Perisic and D'Ambrosio link up nicely deep down the left wing, but the latter's cross is poorly hit and he has to settle for a corner. This time the set-piece is sent too near to Cragno and is easily collected by the Cagliari goalkeeper.
15'
Inter go close again! A curling corner swerves towards the near post and picks out Gagliardini, who nods the ball across the face of goal but can't quite set up a team-mate for an easy tap-in.
14'
More good play by Inter almost results in a chance for Rafinha, who goes close to latching onto a bouncing D'Ambrosio cross but is beaten to it by Romagna at the vital moment.
12'
What an opportunity for Karamoh! A lofted pass is fired down the left flank and into the path of Icardi. The striker meets it well and sends an excellent cross into the penalty area, where it finds Karamoh. The Frenchman only has Cragno to beat but somehow sends his first-time shot agonisingly wide of the near post.
10'
The resulting corner isn't fully dealt with by Cragno, who flaps at the ball and sends it bouncing over to Perisic. The Croatian immediately unleashes a shot, but it's poorly hit and sails high and wide of the goal.
9'
Chance for Perisic! Rafinha is left in far too much space, allowing him to burst towards the box on a marauding run. He then tees up Perisic, who quickly shoots but is denied by Cragno at the near post.
7'
Cagliari are finally able to push forward on their first attack of the night after managing to win the ball in the middle of the pitch, but Miangue's flicked pass towards Giannetti ends up finding the striker in an offside position.
5'
Inter are comfortably dominating possession, with Cagliari really struggling to get anywhere near the ball. The visitors find themselves deep inside their own half of the pitch as they try to keep a determined home side at bay.
3'
João Cancelo has scored a goal for Inter Milan!
GOAL! Great start for Inter! Andreolli accidentally handles the ball deep down the left wing and concedes a free kick in a dangerous position. Joao Cancelo steps up and unleashes a cross-cum-shot that somehow bounces through a sea of players and into the back of the net.
1'
We're off!
Good evening and welcome to our live coverage of today’s Serie A game between Inter and Cagliari at San Siro.
Inter may once again be impressing at the back, but up front their struggles are leaving them in real danger of failing to qualify for the Champions League. Last weekend’s goalless draw away to Atalanta means the Nerazzurri are now without a goal in their last three games, and it’s a problem they desperately need to rectify tonight if they’re to avoid dropping too far behind Roma and Lazio.
As things currently stand, Luciano Spalletti’s men trail the two Rome clubs by just a single point, meaning the battle for Champions League qualification is well and truly on. They’ll have to be at their best between now and the end of the season, though, and it looks set to be a fierce fight between three sides that desperately want to feature in Europe’s premier competition.
Cagliari have slowly but surely climbed up the table and away from the relegation zone, but they currently sit just five points clear of the bottom three and have plenty of work left to do. Three of their last four games have ended in defeat, although the Rossoblu impressed in Saturday’s 2-1 win at home to Udinese and held Lazio to a frustrating draw last month.
Despite the two sides sitting in opposite halves of the table, Inter’s recent form against Cagliari leaves a lot to be desired. The Nerazzurri are without a home league win against the Sardinian side since 2011, losing twice and drawing twice in their previous four meetings at San Siro. They were victorious in November’s meeting at the Sardegna Arena, however, with Mauro Icardi scoring twice in a 3-1 win.
There’s just over 15 minutes left to go until kick-off, so let’s have a look at how the two teams will be lining up this evening…
Inter XI (4-2-3-1): Samir Handanovic; Joao Cancelo, Milan Skriniar, Joao Miranda, Danilo D’Ambrosio; Roberto Gagliardini, Marcelo Brozovic; Yann Karamoh, Rafinha, Ivan Perisic; Mauro Icardi.
Cagliari XI (3-4-1-2): Alessio Cragno; Marco Andreolli, Filippo Romagna, Leandro Castan; Damir Ceter, Artur Ionita, Simone Padoin, Senna Miangue; Andrea Cossu; Marco Sau, Niccolo Giannetti.
Inter substitutes: Lisandro Lopez, Matias Vecino, Andrea Ranocchia, Borja Valero, Davide Santon, Eder, Daniele Padelli, Dalbert Henrique, Tomasso Berni, Antonio Candreva, Andrea Pinamonti.
Luciano Spalletti has decided to make two changes to the Inter side that started the draw away to Atalanta, with Brozovic and Karamoh coming into the starting line-up to replace Santon and Valero, respectively.
Meanwhile, Cagliari boss Diego Lopez has made six alterations to the team that featured in their last outing, with Pisacane, Ceppitelli, Farago, Luca Cigarini, Nicolo Barella and Pavoletti making way for Andreolli, Romagna, Ceter, Ionita, Cossu and Giannetti.
The two sides are making their way out onto the pitch, with just a few minutes to go until kick-off.
HALF-TIME: INTER 1-0 CAGLIARI
Somehow, Inter are only one goal ahead at the half-time break, despite the fact they easily could have scored three or four times by now. They've thoroughly impressed inside the final third of the pitch, where Perisic, Icardi and, in particular, Karamoh have all been a handful for the Cagliari defence. As things stand, there's still plenty of work left to do for the Nerazzurri.
The two teams are making their way back out on to the pitch ahead of the start of the second half. Neither side have made any substitutions during the half-time break.
FULL-TIME: INTER 4-0 CAGLIARI
It was a really difficult night for Cagliari, who can't have too many complaints about the scoreline. They were second best throughout the evening, allowing Inter to comfortably control the game and come away with a much-needed, easy victory. It's temporarily sent them up to third place, two points clear of both Roma and Lazio - albeit with a game in hand over the two Rome clubs.
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