Final score

13 December 2009 15:00

Atalanta
36' (2nd half) Tiribocchi
Inter
15' Milito
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli / Linesmen: Papi, Niccolai / Fourth official: Rocchi
Watch highlights
Minute Text commentary
46' Half time. Inter lead local rivals Atalanta 1-0 thanks to Milito's 15th-minute strike.
45' One minute of stoppage time to play.
45' Acquafresca swivels on the edge of the box and sends a snapshot on target. Julio Cesar saves.
43' Cambiasso makes another penalty-area clearance, this time from Bellini's driven cross from the left.
42' Ceravolo delivers a low cross from the left and Atalanta come back at Inter. Cambiasso blocks and boots out for a corner.
41' Coppola saves a left-wing cross from Eto'o, with Balotelli lurking unmarked at the far post.
40' Cordoba connects with Sneijder's left-wing corner and sees his poked shot blocked. Moments later Inter win another corner, Coppola saving Sneijder's second cross from the flag.
37' Bellini pounces on a loose ball on the left and delivers a looping cross that sails over the head of Acquafresca.
35' Atalanta waste their seventh corner kick as Ceravolo commits a foul in the area.
33' Wesley Sneijder's stunning curling free kick bounces off the the crossbar.
32' Garics is booked for a foul on Eto'o just outside the Atalanta penalty area.
30' Balotelli receives from Sneijder with his back to goal and turns two Atalanta players before sending a low shot wide of Coppola's right-hand post.
26' Ferreira Pinto sends a right-wing cross over to the far post. Lucio is first to the ball and the Brazilian heads behind for a corner.
26' Sneijder is yellow-carded for protesting.
20' Guarente looks to release Ceravolo down the left but overhits his pass and the ball rolls out for a goal kick.
18' Atalanta's Ceravolo sidesteps two on the edge of our area and unleashes a strong shot that is blocked by Lucio.
15' That was Milito's 10th goal in Serie A for Inter.
15' GOOOAAALLLL!!!!!! Wesley Sneijder picks out Diego Milito in the box with a superb pass and Il Principe takes on four opponents before firing past Coppola. ATALANTA 0-1 INTER.
11' Bellini's fierce cross-shot from the left is blocked by Cambiasso and the ball is goalbound, forcing Julio Cesar into a brilliant reflex save.
9' Garics controls a long ball from Guarente and gets into the box but Chivu times his challenge to perfection, conceding a corner.
6' Back in our half, Ferreira Pinto charges past Cristian Chivu and fires wide from 25 yards.
6' Inter win a free kick out on the right channel. Sneijder delivers the cross and Eto'o nods down for Lucio who crashes wide.
4' Atalanta attack down the right and Padoin gets a in high cross. It dips over Julio Cesar's crossbar and goes behind for a goal kick.
3' Maicon hits a 30-yard shot at Coppola after receiving a square pass from Balotelli.
1' José Mourinho has kept faith with the same module used in Wednesday's victory over Rubin Kazan, but has moved several players around with Zanetti slotting in alongside Cambiasso in midfield, Chivu returning at left-back after missing UCL Matchday 6 through suspension, and Cordoba coming in for the injured Samuel at the centre of defence. The Inter coach won't be watching the Nerazzurri from the bench today. Like his Atalanta counterpart Antonio Conte, Mourinho is suspended.
1' Atalanta kick off against Inter, who are wearing the Centenary away shirts this afternoon. FORZA INTER!!!
1' Inter (4-2-3-1): 12 Julio Cesar; 13 Maicon, 6 Lucio, 2 Cordoba, 26 Chivu; 4 Zanetti, 19 Cambiasso; 45 Balotelli, 10 Sneijder, 9 Eto'o; 22 Milito. &#8232;<br>Subs: 1 Toldo, 5 Stankovic, 8 Thiago Motta, 14 Vieira, 18 Suazo, 23 Materazzi 30 Mancini.
1' Atalanta (4-1-4-1): 32 Coppola; 8 Garics, 77 Bianco, 5 Manfredini, 6 Bellini; 15 De Ascentis; 79 Ferreira Pinto, 22 Padoin, 17 Guarente, 70 Ceravolo; 9 Acquafresca. &#8232;<br>Subs: 1 Consigli, 2 Talamonti, 7 Madonna, 13 Peluso, 18 Caserta, 21 Radovanovic, 90 Tiribocchi.
Minute Text commentary
48' Full time. Atalanta hold Inter 1-1 in Bergamo.
48' Coppola makes a point-blank save from Thiago Motta after great work in the box by Eto'o.
45' Three minutes of added time.
45' Corner to Inter as Madonna heads out Maicon's right-wing free kick.
43' Madonna goes through on goal but he loses control of the ball and Julio Cesar makes it his.
42' Eto'o fires over the bar from a tight angle as Inter look to snatch a late winner.
41' Dejan Stankovic is flagged offside as he rifles into the side-netting after a through ball from Eto'o.
40' Bianco gets in at the near post to head wide Caserta's right-wing cross from the corner flag.
38' Padoin is booked for a challenge on Zanetti.
36' GOAL. Atalanta equalise through substitute Simone Tiribocchi, who controls Caserta's ball into the area and slots into the far corner. ATALANTA 1-1 INTER.
35' The Bergamo Nerazzurri make their final change. Caserta replaces Guarente.
31' The hosts replace their injured captain Bellini with Madonna.
31' Inter bring on Thiago Motta for Diego Milito.
28' Milito plays in Maicon and the Brazilian has just Coppola to beat but the Atalanta keeper narrows the angle and saves.
25' Coppola saves Eto'o's angled low shot moments after booting clear to deny Milito.
23' Inter make a tactical change, with Dejan Stankovic replacing Mario Balotelli.
19' Inter down to ten men as Sneijder is booked for a foul from behind on Guarente. It's the Dutchman's second booking and Rizzoli produces a red card.
17' Atalanta bring on Tiribocchi for Ferreira Pinto.
16' Sneijder does a 360° turn just outside the area and sends a shot inches over.
13' Maicon looks for the top left corner with a speculative shot from the right edge of the box. It's wide.
13' Zanetti swings in a cross for Milito but Bianco is first to the ball and the Atalanta defender concedes a corner.
8' Lucio steals in at the back post and powers home a header from Sneijder's right-wing free kick. The linesman's flag goes up and Rizzoli disallows the goal for offside.
3' Atalanta close to a leveller after some pinball in the box. The last player to touch the ball is Cordoba, and it's a corner for the hosts.
2' Milito is closed down by two Atalanta defenders as he takes a Sneijder pass into the area.
1' Inter kick off the second half. FORZA RAGAZZI!!!
Zanetti
6.64
6.64
Cordoba
6.55
6.55
Stankovic
6.32
6.32
Cambiasso
6.84
6.84
Julio Cesar
6.6
6.6
Maicon
5.66
5.66
Chivu
5.16
5.16
Balotelli
5.78
5.78
Milito
7.36
7.36
Motta
5.64
5.64
Lucio
4.54
4.54
Eto'o
5.79
5.79
Sneijder
5.61
5.61
Average rating 6.04
2 shots on target 5
4 shots off target 5
17 fouls committed 16
12 corners 5
1 offsides 6
46% ball possession 54%
Conte v Inter / Mourinho

Antonio Conte faces Inter and José Mourinho for the first time in his coaching career.

Mourino v Atalanta

José Mourinho faces Atalanta for the third time after last season's Serie A win in Milan and defeat in Bergamo.

Details:
2008/09 Serie A Inter-Atalanta 4-3 1-3

Bellini poised to match Bonacina. Doni within sight of Stromberg

Gianpaolo Bellini and Cristiano Doni have made 194 and 183 Serie A appearances respectively for Atalanta. The two players are seventh and ninth on the club's all-time list of appearances in Italy's top flight. Bellini is one more match away from equalling sixth-placed Bonacina (195 appearances), while Doni is two away from matcing Stromberg's tally of 185.

Doni and goals against Inter

Cristiano Doni loves scoring against the Nerazzurri. Of his total of 137 goals in professional football. the Atalanta midfielder has scored 8 in matches against Inter. He has scored the same number against Torino.

Ferreira Pinto set to make milestone appearance

By appearing against Inter, Atalanta midfielder Adriano Ferreira Pinto will complete a century of appearances in Italy's Serie A. The Brazilian made his top-flight debut in the Bergamo Nerazzurri's 3-1 home win over Ascoli on 10 September 2006.

Atalanta 2 away from 100th goal against Inter. Inter 2 short of double century against Atalanta

Atalanta have scored 98 goals in competitive matches against Inter, who have netted 198 against the Bergamo outfit. The first meeting between the two teams was on 12 December 1937. It ended 1-1 with Severo Cominelli opening the scoring for Atalanta in the 63rd minute. Giovanni Ferrari equalised for Inter, who were then known as Ambrosiana, in the 68th minute.

Nerazzurri goalless in one of last 20

Inter have failed to score in only one of their last 20 Serie A games. It happened on 26 September 2009 when the Nerazzurri lost 1-0 at Sampdoria. In the other 19 matches Mourinho's team have scored 46 goals.

Inter top of the table in 2009

With 77 points to AC Milan's 72, Inter could win the platonic title of 2009 Serie A champions with a result in Bergamo. The Nerazzurri have also scored more top-flight goals than any other team from January to December 2009, netting 73 times. Roma are second with 68 goals.

Ever-present captain

Javier Zanetti has played all 36 Serie A fixtures from January to date. So has Chievo's Sergio Pellissier, but the Inter captain has never been substituted, racking up a total of 3,240 Serie A minutes. Zanetti hasn't missed a league game since Inter 4-1 Livorno on 28 October 2006, a run of 121 consecutive matches. In 14 seasons at Inter, the Argentine has been ever present in six Serie A campaigns.

DA IMPLEMENTARE
wins(25) draws(23) defeats(16)

BERGAMO - Inter were held 1-1 by Atalanta at the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia but the stretch their advantage at the top of the table to five points as second-placed AC Milan went down at home to Palermo. 

Diego Milito scored an early opener, celebrating his first appearance in the Centenary away shirt with his 10th league goal for Inter, and the Nerazzurri looked to have kept their cushion despite playing with ten men after the dismissal of Wesley Sneijder. But with nine minutes remaining, second-half substitute Simone Tiribocchi scored to ensure the points were shared.

There was no change in formation as José Mourinho stuck with the 4-2-3-1 lineup that sealed qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League. Cordoba continued alongside Lucio at centre-back after coming on for the injured Samuel against Rubin Kazan. Zanetti switched to defensive midfield, partnering Cambiasso, while Chivu returned from suspension in his left-back role.

With Mourinho and his Atalanta counterpart Antonio Conte serving touchline bans, vice coaches Beppe Baresi and Antonio Toma took their places on the bench to get their messages across to the teams.

A bright start from the hosts saw Julio Cesar make a reflex save after Cambiasso intercepted Bellini's driven cross-shot from the left.

Inter soaked up the early pressure and took the lead through Milito. The Argentine striker maintained his incredible scoring rate in Serie A with a typical finish after receiving Sneijder's quick-thinking through ball and escaping the attentions of four opponents.

Wesley Sneijder was at the heart of Inter's attacking play and on the half hour he played a neat pass to Balotelli, who turned two opponents before firing a low shot wide. The Dutch playmaker was denied a second by the woodwork in the 33rd minute when his trademark curling free kick rattled the crossbar.

The Bergamo Nerazzurri's lone striker Acquafresca, a spectator for much of the opening forty-five, got his first sight of goal on the stroke of half time, but Julio Cesar was equal to his snapshot.

Atalanta began the second period in the same vein as the first but once again it was Inter who produced the first threat. Lucio got in front of his marker at the back post and headed home Sneijder's outswinging free kick but the flag went up for offside.

Inter were reduced to ten men in the 64th minute when Sneijder was shown a second yellow card for a challenge on Guarente. Atalanta took full advantage and with nine minutes remaining Tiribocchi slotted low past Julio Cesar after controlling Caserta's ball into the area.

Thiago Motta came close to snatching an injury-time winner for Inter, but Coppola made a point-blank save from the Brazilian to give his team a crucial point.

Atalanta 1-1 Inter (HT: 0-1 )

Scorers: Milito 15, Tiribocchi 81.

Atalanta: 32 Coppola; 8 Garics, 77 Bianco, 5 Manfredini, 6 Bellini (7 Madonna 76); 15 De Ascentis; 79 Ferreira Pinto (90 Tiribocchi 62), 22 Padoin, 17 Guarente (18 Caserta 81), 70 Ceravolo; 9 Acquafresca.
Subs not used: 1 Consigli, 2 Talamonti, 13 Peluso,  21 Radovanovic.

Coach
: Antonio Toma (Antonio Conte is suspended).

Inter: 12 Julio Cesar; 13 Maicon, 6 Lucio, 2 Cordoba, 26 Chivu; 4 Zanetti, 19 Cambiasso; 45 Balotelli (5 Stankovic 68), 10 Sneijder, 9 Eto'o; 22 Milito (8 Thiago Motta 76). 

Subs not used
: 1 Toldo, 14 Vieira, 18 Suazo, 23 Materazzi 30 Mancini.

Coach: Giuseppe Baresi (José Mourinho is suspended).

Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Bologna).

Booked: Sneijder 26, 64, Garics 32, Padoin 83.
Sent off: Sneijder 64.

starting lineups

Coppola 12 Julio Cesar
Garics 13 Maicon
Bianco 6 Lucio
Manfredini 2 Cordoba
Bellini 26 Chivu
De Ascentis 4 Zanetti
Ferreira Pinto 19 Cambiasso
Padoin 45 Balotelli
Guarente 10 Sneijder
Ceravolo 9 Eto'o
Acquafresca 22 Milito

substitutes

Consigli 1 Toldo
Talamonti 5 Stankovic
Madonna 8 Motta
Peluso 14 Vieira
Caserta 18 Suazo
Radovanovic 23 Materazzi
Tiribocchi 30 Mancini