Inter Milan 1-0 Arsenal (6 Nov 2024) Match Analysis

On November 7, 2024By Littum

at Inter Milan Hakan Calhanoglu maintained his incredible penalty record as his spot-kick secured a 1-0 win for the Italians over Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Neither side had conceded a goal in their opening three games in the tournament, but Arsenal’s defense was eventually breached in unlucky fashion in the first half after a harsh handball decision against Michael Merino.

Çalhanoglu has now converted 19 out of 19 penalties in all competitions since joining Inter.

Arsenal besieged the Inter goal in the second half with Kai Havertz denied by the home keeper Yann Sommer and with another effort deflected just over, but Inter defended superbly to move to 10 points from four games.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal had 14 second-half attempts but lacked creativity and now sit outside the top eight automatic qualifiers for the knockout stages by seven points.

Hakan Çalhanoglu maintained his perfect record from the spot since joining Inter Milan.

They have now lost three of their last six games in all competitions, including Premier League defeats to Bournemouth and Newcastle United.

The first meeting between the clubs for 21 years began with Inter on top and they were denied an early goal when Denzil Dumfries smashed a fierce shot against the crossbar.

Çalhanoglu then went close before the game turned into an affair with neither side taking any risks.

Arsenal looked good but cursed their luck when Merino was adjudged to have blocked a flick Mehdi Taremi and Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs pointed to the spot.

A VAR check could not save Arsenal and there was never any doubt that penalty guide Calhanoglu would strike David Raya.

Inter were content to soak up pressure in the second half, with Arsenal lacking the invention to break them down.

Information from Reuters contributed to this report.