On a night when Romelu Lukaku was the focus of Inter Milan fans’ ire, Marcus Thuram — who replaced the departed Belgium striker — scored in a 1-0 win over Roma to restore the Nerazzurri atop Serie A.
Thuram redirected a cross from Federico Dimarco from close range in the 81st minute at the San Siro to finally break apart Jose Mourinho’s defensive tactics on Sunday.
While Mourinho was suspended and watched the match from the stands, Roma still sat back and absorbed attack after attack.
In the first half alone, Roma conceded 12 shots without attempting a single shot of its own. By the end, Inter had produced 19 shots to Roma’s three.
Inter twice hit the crossbar, first with Hakan Calhanoglu early on and then with Carlos Augusto in the final minutes.
Inter moved two points ahead of Juventus, which beat Hellas Verona 1-0 on Saturday to move top — albeit temporarily — for the first time in more than three years.
Roma stayed eighth, 11 points behind Inter.
AC Milan remained third, three points back, after squandering a two-goal advantage in a 2-2 draw at defending champion Napoli.
While the buildup was all about Lukaku facing his former club, Lukaku’s biggest impact was clearing away Inter corners giving Inter fans little chance to whistle at the player who left their club acrimoniously after last season and then joined a fierce rival.
Mourinho was also formerly with Inter, having led the Nerazzurri to a treble of titles in 2010.
