TALKING POINT: HAVE INTER ALREADY WON THE TITLE?
At this point, I think we are facing a fact and there is little to doubt: Inter may have already won the Scudetto.
The Nerazzurri are playing at a very high level. They keep winning every weekend, and the gap between them and Juventus keeps growing. With the 4-0 win over Salernitana, Inter sprinted to 63 points in the standings, putting them nine points ahead of their rivals, who drew with Verona 2-2.
Marcus Thuram, Lautaro Martinez, Denzel Dumfries and Marko Arnautovic were the four players who contributed to Inter's victory. A team that scores a lot of goals, concedes little and dominates against everyone. A perfect machine, expertly built by Beppe Marotta and Simone Inzaghi, who will probably already feel that they have one hand on the Scudetto.
It is hard to imagine that Juventus can make up the lost ground. It is very difficult to see Inter losing more than three games between now and the end of the season, especially considering that for Juventus to overtake them, they cannot lose any more points on the road. The feeling is that Inter have already won the Scudetto.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: LEANDRO PAREDES
Since Daniele De Rossi arrived, the Argentine Paredes has started to play at levels we have yet to see from him in the capital; indeed he has probably playing his best football.
Paredes has become the brain of Roma. He looks like a miniature copy of his current coach. De Rossi's ideas seem to match perfectly with the characteristics of Paredes, who has not missed half a game since January 16th.
Roma are playing much slicker and with shorter passes, meaning Paredes has to cover less of the field defensively. In the build-up phase, it is easier for him to find his teammates between the lines and reward their movements, which is why his performance has improved markedly both defensively and offensively.
In the last match against Frosinone, Paredes even scored a goal from the penalty spot. He and Lorenzo Pellegrini are definitely the players who have benefited most from the management change. The Argentine really looks like a different player.
TEAM OF THE WEEK: BOLOGNA
We said it a few weeks ago: Thiago Motta's Bologna, after a complicated period in which they dropped a few points, is back. Josh Zirkzee and his teammates on Sunday beat Maurizio Sarri's Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico, thus rising to fifth place in the standings, seven points behind third in the table and ahead of Roma, Lazio, and Napoli to name a few.
It is an incredible achievement. Perhaps we do not fully realize what Motta and his boys are doing this year. We have become accustomed to and are taking for granted seeing Bologna play with such personality against anyone, including the strongest teams in the league.
On Sunday, Oussama El Azzouzi and Zirkzee gave Bologna the win, answering Gustav Isaksen's early goal. Motta continues to achieve important results by showing great tactical knowledge and just as much pragmatism.
SURPRISE OF THE WEEK: MONZA DEFEAT MILAN
Another masterclass by Raffaele Palladino. The Monza coach got the better of Stefano Pioli, winning 4-2 against Milan and preventing the Rossoneri from overtaking Juventus in second place in the standings.
It was a one-sided match, a continuous and uncontested domination by Andrea Colpani and his teammates, despite the fact that at one point the score was 2-2 (thanks to great performances by Olivier Giroud and Christian Pulisic).
The changes made by Pioli did not pay off and Palladino took advantage: Matteo Pessina and Dany Mota put Monza up 2-0; Milan had momentarily drawn level thanks to Giroud and Pulisic, but Warren Bondo and Lorenzo Colombo scored to make it 4-2.
Bondo scored Monza's third goal, a sensational strike that Mike Maignan could do nothing about. It was his first goal, as evidenced by his burst of joy. A bad misstep by Pioli and his team. At this point, their hope lies in their Europa League campaign.
