Inter drop points at Fiorentina after late Ndour leveller

Fiorentina, a club that formerly stood proudly with Inter among Serie A’s ‘Seven Sisters’ during the revered 1990s era of Italian football, endured the most unfortunate opening against the dominant frontrunners in this encounter.

Pio Esposito seized the initial advantage for Inter by netting a brilliant flicked header from Nicolo Barella’s delivery within the first minute, and then Barella saw a diverted shot disallowed due to offside, leaving La Viola appearing utterly unprepared for a potential thrashing.

Nevertheless, under Paolo Vanoli’s guidance, the team began to find their footing and created multiple chances to level the score during an energetic opening period.

Moise Kean nearly poked in Marco Brescianini’s pass at the back post, and Albert Guðmundsson could not connect properly with Dodo’s inviting ball, as it struck the Icelandic player’s shoulder and rolled out. Later, Kean’s strike was nullified for offside, during a spirited push at the end of the first half that offered the home side some hope at halftime.

Post-interval, Fiorentina found it hard to maintain that drive, while Inter wasted two opportunities to extend their advantage, with Manuel Akanji and Marcus Thuram both failing to hit the mark from set-piece corners.

Yet, mirroring the earlier period, Fiorentina built momentum later in the second half and earned their equaliser in the 77th minute, as Cher Ndour pounced first on the loose ball to slot it in from near the goal line, following Yann Sommer’s save on Gudmundsson’s shot from an angle that fell kindly to the midfielder.

The initiative had fully shifted towards La Viola, and Jack Harrison came tantalisingly close to adding another, bending a right-foot effort just beyond the upright.

In the end, the points were divided, extending Fiorentina’s ongoing and much-needed resurgence. The team remains without a loss in their past five outings in all tournaments (W3, D2), though caution prevails given their vulnerable spot in 16th place, only two points above the relegation zone.

For Inter, this result meant forgoing the opportunity to widen their lead to eight points at the top, settling instead for a six-point buffer over local competitors AC Milan.