Inter Milan faced Chievo at the San Siro for their Serie A clash.
Andrea Stramaccioni's side were be looking to bounce back from their shock 3-1 defeat to Siena with a win, which would have take them ahead of rivals AC Milan in fourth-place.
Chievo, on the other hand, had the chance to move up to 11th with all three points, taking them further away from the relegation zone.
The away side started brightly, but soon found themselves 1-0 down when Antonio Cassano beat Christian Puggioni at his near post after just two minutes.
Chievo continued to put pressure on Inter after the goal and were rewarded when Luca Rigoni equalised with a free header in the box.
Inter soon got themselves back ahead when Andrea Ranocchia scored a powerful header from the corner to make it 2-1.
Diego Milito then secured the points on his return from injury with a goal early in the second half.
Find out how all the action unfolded Sports Mole's minute-by-minute live commentary below.
Good evening all! Welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of tonight's Serie A clash between Inter Milan and Chievo.
Both sides have had fairly indifferent starts to 2013 and will be looking to get things back on track tonight at the San Siro.
Let's kick things off with some team news...
Inter Milan: Handanovic; Zanetti, Ranocchia, Juan Jesus, Nagatomo; Gargano, Kuzmanovic, Cambiasso; Palacio, Milito, Cassano
Chievo: Puggioni; Andreolli, Acerbi, Dainelli, Jokic; Cofie, Rigoni, Seymour; Hetemaj; Paloschi, Thereau
A bold, attacking line up from Stramaccioni tonight! Diego Milito returns from injury and is joined up front by Rodrigo Palacio and Antonio Cassano.
Esteban Cambiasso also returns to the starting line up, while Mateo Kovacic, who was due to make his first start, has had to pull out with ankle strain.
Fredy Guarin and Cristian Chivu are also both missing tonight due to suspensions.
Gennaro Sardo, Boukary Drame and Adrian Stoian are all injured for Chievo tonight. Though, they have Alberto Paloschi partnering Cyril Thereau in up front - Eugenio Corini will be hoping they can cause damage to Inter's back line!
It's a vital game for Inter tonight - Stramaccioni is under real pressure following a desperately poor run of one win in the last seven Serie A games. Fortunes need to be turned around quickly before the Nerazzurri lose sight of the Champions League places.
The Inter boss has had plenty of criticism in recent weeks, with many complaining about the lack of consistency in his tactics. Well, 4-3-3 seems to be the system tonight - will it work tonight?
The home side will see this as a huge chance to get three points - Chievo have lost their last six consecutive trips to San Siro.
However, Chievo will certainly fancy their chances considering Inter's poor form - can they take advantage of the lack of organisation in the ranks?
The key for Chievo will be the partnership between Paloschi and Thereau - if on form tonight, they could create real danger for Inter's fragile defence.
However, having said that, I'm sure the Chievo players are not looking forward to facing the attacking trident of Milito, Cassano and Palacio!
Not long until things get going at San Siro. The players are making their way onto the pitch ahead of kick off.
Difficult one to call tonight with neither side in any kind of form. You'd think Inter would have too much quality for the visitors, but we've had some erratic results in recent weeks!
Chievo kick off and we're away...
Javier Zanetti shows bombs down the right wing and earns his side a corner.
GOAL! Inter 1-0 Chievo (Cassano)
Chievo never really clear from the corner and the ball falls to Cassano on the right-hand side of the box. The forward drives at goal from the angle and somehow beats Puggioni at the near post.
Very poor from the goalkeeper, there! He should've had that front post covered.
Chievo will be desperately disappointed to concede early on - they actually started really positively and had the better of the opening stages.
To be fair to Chievo, they have continued to dominate the play after the goal. Corini must be kicking himself!
Inter show their vulnerability at the back once again, allowing the ball to bounce - Gargano gets back to clear, though. A good sign for the away side!
The goal aside, this has been a fantastic start from Corini's side. They've kept the ball extremely well and are probing that Inter back line.
CHANCE! Acerbi finds himself completely unmarked in the box from the free kick, but can only head wide. A huge chance for Chievo!
That should really have been 1-1 - Acerbi has his head in his hands, and rightly so!
Some confident play from Chievo, here - they've controlled the game so far and look very comfortable, too.
Good pressure from Paloschi and Thereau almost creates a chance - it looks like they're ready to pounce on this nervous Inter defence.
Strong tackle from Rigoni on Zanetti causes an uproar! The Chievo man's studs were showing, but there was no malice in the challenge. A yellow card is probably fair.
GOAL! Inter 1-1 Chievo (Rigoni)
Shocking defending from Inter! A cross from the left wing is deflected off Zanetti and Rigoni simply walks into the box and nods it past Handanovic.
The two centre halves were asleep, there - neither bothered to pick up Rigoni's run from midfield. You can't say Chievo don't deserve that goal, though. They have dominated proceedings so far.
CHANCE! Cambiasso bursts from midfield and strikes towards goal, but Puggioni saves well with his legs.
GOAL! Inter 2-1 Chievo (Ranocchia)
An absolutely stunning header from Ranocchia! The centre half dominates in the air and puts his side back in front.
CHANCE! It's end-to-end, here! Chievo almost equalise from a free kick, but Handanovic keeps them out. Inter then burst away on the break and Cassano sees his effort saved, too. Fantastic game so far!
Chievo are penned in now as Inter pressurise from a succession of corners.
Just looking at a replay of that Chievo chance from the free kick - it's poor defending again as the attackers are allowed to walk into the box unmarked. Handanovic bailed his side out with a brave save.
Ten minutes left of this enthralling first half and Inter have a dangerous free kick from around 20 yards. Cassano stands over it...
CHANCE! It's Gargano who hits it! He curls it over the wall and strikes the post!
So close from Gargano - who knew he had that in his locker!? Palacio seemed to be far too flat-footed for the rebound, he definitely had a chance to score, there.
Hetemaj goes down in the area, but the referee is having none of it. He went down far too easily under Cambiasso's challenge - correct decision.
Cambiasso is struggling with a knock to his ankle, it seems. Stramaccioni will be hoping his midfield talisman can run it off - he's been vital so far for Inter, in defence and attack!
Cambiasso is fine - he's charging round with real purpose as ever.
Two minutes of stoppage time have been added on by the referee.
HALF-TIME: Inter 2-1 Chievo
Well, that was an absorbing 45 minutes of football!
It has to be said that Chievo had the better of the half, but the away side find themselves 2-1 down.
Corini will be delighted with his side's performance - they've showed no fear whatsoever when getting forward and seem intent on causing damage to a clearly nervous Inter defence.
However, Cassano and Milito have looked dangerous for Inter, along with Zanetti and Nagatomo, who have pushed on as much as they possibly can from the wing-back positions. Chievo also look susceptible to balls into the box - something that Ranocchia took full advantage of to make it 2-1 with a wonderful header from 12 yards out.
We're in for a thrilling second half at San Siro after that end-to-end display from both sides.
Tactics seem to have gone out of the window for both sides, it's simply attack after attack at each end. It makes for great viewing!
Not long until the restart - I'm not even going to bother to try and predict how this one is going to end up!
We're underway once again...
The first action of the half comes from Zanetti, who goes on a trademark run down the right wing. A, quite frankly, ridiculous amount of energy shown by the 39-year-old veteran - he just burns past the Chievo defenders with ease!
GOAL! Inter 3-1 Chievo (Milito)
A goal-scoring return for the Argentine! Zanetti finds the run of Cambiasso from midfield, who then squares it to Milito. The striker takes one touch, turns and smashes home.
CHANCE! Inter almost make it four! Cambiasso's reverse ball almost finds Palacio, then Nagatomo is denied by the goalkeeper from the rebound!
Inter are starting to get a grip on this game, which sounds strange considering they're 3-1 up, but Chievo have dominated and looked much more comfortable in possession.
CHANCE! A sweeping counter attack from Inter! Cambiasso wins the ball and starts the attack, which ends with Cassano crossing low to Palacio. The Chievo defence did just enough to ease him out.
CHANCE! Palacio should have made it four! Cassano drifts past Chievo's midfield and find Palacio on the edge of the area, but he puts it over the bar.
Inter are beginning to look fairly comfortable now, controlling the possession much more and creating plenty of chances when they get forward. However, with their defensive woes, you cannot rule out another Chievo goal.
CHANCE! Jokic crosses to Paloschi, but he cannot get over the ball and heads right across goal.
SUBSTITUTION! Milito is replaced by Ricky Alvarez - a great return for the striker!
Cambiasso has been sensational so far for Inter - covered every blade of grass in a real box-to-box performance!
SUBSTITUTION! Seymour is replaced by the veteran Luciano - an attacking move from Corini.
Despite holding a comfortable lead, Cassano isn't too happy! We've just seen a shot of the forward giving somebody an earful - rather them than me!
CHANCE! Alvarez gets into the box and creates a yard of space, but his shot is saved well.
SUBSTITUTION! A huge moment in the San Siro! Stankovic makes his return to the first team - and first appearance of the season - replacing Cambiasso in midfield.
CHANCE! A wonderful piece of improvised skill from Alvarez creates a chance for Inter. Puggioni comes out and closes down well, keeping Palacio out. That could've wrapped the game up for Inter.
Inter are trying to kill this game off now, but can't quite find the right ball in the final third. You still get the feeling it isn't quite over with this side.
Plenty of credit must go to Chievo tonight - even when behind, they've stuck to their style, passed the ball well and attacked with real intent.
SUBSTITUTION! Kuzmanovic is replaced by Ezequiel Schelotto.
Palacio is down with severe cramp, it seems. The stretcher has come on to take him off the field for treatment. He's worked hard tonight, even though he hasn't quite found the quality in the final third.
Four minutes have been added on.
Stankovic gives away a free kick, earns a yellow and has a little go at various Chievo players - he's back!
FULL-TIME: Inter 3-1 Chievo
Inter take all three points with an impressive 3-1 win over a very good Chievo side.
A very entertaining game at the San Siro tonight. Chievo were brave and attacked Inter well, but the home side had the clinical edge with the likes of Cassano and Milito up front.
Check out the match report of tonight's thrilling encounter from Liam Power here.
That's us done for tonight - thanks to you all for joining Sports Mole's live coverage!
Written by
Sam Hughes
Sam Hughes
