Francesco Pio Esposito’s 78th-minute strike proved the difference as Inter edged Lecce 1-0 in a hard-fought Serie A encounter on Wednesday, with the visitors’ goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone producing heroics to keep the scoreline respectable.
Inter dominated possession (67.6%) and peppered the Lecce goal with 21 shots, but found Falcone in inspired form. The visiting keeper made six crucial saves to frustrate the Nerazzurri, who controlled proceedings from the opening whistle yet struggled to find the breakthrough.
The match featured early controversy when Ange-Yoan Bonny thought he’d won a penalty in the 26th minute, only for VAR to overturn the decision. Marcus Thuram had already been booked nine minutes earlier as Inter’s frustrations mounted against Lecce’s resolute defensive wall.
Piotr Zieliński orchestrated play magnificently in midfield, earning an 8.3 match rating with three key passes. Alessandro Bastoni was equally impressive from defense, contributing four key passes while helping keep Lecce’s limited attacking threat at bay—the visitors managed just one shot on target all evening.
Inter boss made tactical adjustments on 56 minutes, introducing fresh legs including Nicolò Barella, but it took until the 78th minute for Esposito to finally crack Lecce’s resistance with the match-winner. The young forward’s clinical finish rewarded Inter’s persistent pressure and 11 corner kicks.
Francesco Acerbi and Manuel Akanji provided defensive solidity alongside Bastoni, while Carlos Augusto contributed both defensively and in attack with two key passes and two interceptions. Despite Lecce’s commendable 70% tackle success rate and Antonino Gallo’s solid 7.0 performance, the visitors couldn’t find an equalizer.
The narrow victory keeps Inter’s title ambitions on track, though they’ll need sharper finishing against tougher opposition ahead.
