Lazio Vs. Inter Milan: 3-1 Full Time, Rafa Clearing Out His Desk?

After Lazio’s 3-1 win over Inter Milan at the Olimpico, the questions about Rafael Benitez’s job security will be raised yet again. Despite knowing exactly what Lazio were going to do tactically, Benitez had no answers. The match was fairly even with both teams having their own stretches of being the better side, but at the end of the day, Lazio had the finishing quality that Inter did not. Sure, a lot of this had to do with Lazio just being good. A lot of it had to do with some Inter players having an off day. However, it has to be said that a lot of it also had to do with Benitez playing Sneijder out of his natural position, rendering him borderline useless until his team was down 1-0.

Giuseppe Biava’s scored a bit of a lucky goal with his stomach to open the scoring on the 26th minute, but the goal came off a great set piece delivery and some poor defending by Inter. This was not Lazio’s first dead ball opportunity, as Inter gave away quite a few to start the match. At this point, down 1-0, Inter changed their tactics and played much better until Lazio’s second goal, but ultimately failed to produce anything.

The second goal, while it came as the result of quality play and was well deserved, can still be pinned on Benitez to a certain extent. Hernanes played a great ball over the top to Mauro Zarate, surging down the left side, who beat right back Felice Natalino badly with his touch. Zarate finished brilliantly, but one can’t help but think that someone else might have prevented that opportunity. Why the 18 year old was making his full debut on the road against the second place team in Serie A, only Rafa Benitez knows, if even he knows. Natalino was substituted off for Davide Santon in the 81st minute, a move from the Department of Things That Should Have Happened 81 Minutes Ago.

Goran Pandev brought Inter back into the game in the 73rd minute, scoring on the first truly clear cut chance that Inter Milan created all match. And really, it was only created because Pandev’s first shot deflected off a defender and came right back to him. Had Fernando Muslera not been out of position, which he wasn’t by any fault of his own, Pandev probably wouldn’t have scored.

Inter were the better side for about 15 minutes after that goal, but their massive push forward allowed for Lazio to find an equalizer. Thiago Motta committed a silly foul just outside his own box, setting up a direct free kick for Lazio from 20 yards out. Hernanes hit a fantastic free kick that took a slight deflection before it went into the back of the net. Honestly, even without the deflection, Castellazzi was a mile behind the shot. It sealed the victory and a man of the match performance from Hernanes, despite his mediocre first half.

Lazio doesn’t move up in the table as a result of their win, as they are now level on points with league leaders A.C. Milan, trailing only on goal differential. As a result of their loss, Inter have fallen one spot behind Palermo due to goal differential, while Roma also have a chance to pass them on the weekend. If both Juventus and Napoli win on the weekend, Inter would be four points outside of Champions League places. They currently sit seven points from first place and could potentially face a double digit deficit when the week’s fixtures come to a close.