Esposito’s unforgettable evening: his first goal and a hug from his mother

MILAN - There are simply some nights that you’ll never forget, that remain in your memory but most of all in your heart. It’s those nights when all of your childhood dreams come true, where you remember how you used to fantasise and say: one day I’ll put on an Inter shirt at San Siro, and I’ll score. That was Sebastiano Esposito tonight. A first, small step in a career that has barely begun, but more than anything a special night for both him and Inter fans around the world.

Sebastiano, 17 years and 172 days old. Born in Castellammare di Stabia on 2 July 2002. With the Nerazzurri for five years, today was his first start for the First Team. When Agudelo brought down Gagliardini in the box, as soon as the referee gave the penalty kick, Esposito turned to Lukaku, his hands pressed together and his gaze pleading: “Please can I take it?” Lukaku handed him the ball along with his trust and approval, and Sebastiano didn’t let him down.

Esposito smashed it past Radu, another youngster to have made his Serie A debut in Nerazzurri colours, becoming the second youngest scorer in Inter’s history in Serie A: in front of him only Mario Corso (17 years and 97 days old), and behind him Mario Balotelli, Aldo Campatelli and Roberto Cesati.

After the game Esposito ran over to the person who for him represents everything, his mother Flavia, giving her a great big hug. There was no need for words between the two after tonight. The Nerazzurri forward had already said enough to Inter TV and Sky Sport: “It’s been a fantastic week, I can’t lie, I didn’t sleep a lot thinking about how this game would go. I’d like to thank the team, the Coach, the Club and Romelu, especially for the goal. He’s a fantastic person and an extraordinary player. He told me to be sure of myself when I stepped up to strike the ball and to score.

“They’re all great people before they’re professionals. I found myself in sync with Romelu right away, he’s a fantastic person who’s always looking to help me, he reassured me a lot by saying that everything would go alright and I’m so happy to have scored. I’m happy with the win and with the faith that the Coach has shown in me, now the more difficult part is coming and we’ll need to work hard. All of the sacrifices I’ve made are now bearing fruit and I hope that I can continue on this path because there’s still a lot of work to be done. We work all week long to get to Sunday in the best form possible and to win all of our games, that’s the Coach’s winning mentality and we have to listen to him. The wish is to always work in the best possible way and to earn points so that the team can go as far as possible.”