Esposito and Thuram Strike Early as Inter Sink Como 2-0 to Close Within a Point of Lazio

Twelve minutes. That was all it took for Inter to remind everyone at San Siro who they are.

A week after the derby defeat to AC Milan handed them their first league loss of the season, Cristian Chivu's side came out with a point to prove, and Como — the form team in Italy, fresh from the biggest away win in Champions League history — barely had time to settle before they were two goals down. Francesco Pio Esposito tapped in the opener from Djed Spence's inviting cross, and before the game was 20 minutes old Marcus Thuram had lashed a second past Robert Sanchez after a poor clearance dropped kindly into his path. Two chances, two goals, and the title race had a new shape.

It was the kind of start that changes the whole feel of a match. Como arrived in Milan on a six-match winning run, a team playing with the swagger of a side that had just put nine past Lens in France on Wednesday night. Cesc Fabregas has built something genuinely exciting there, a young team that presses high and plays without fear. But San Siro on a Sunday evening is a different test, and Inter passed it by refusing to let Como breathe. The home side pressed the visitors' build-up from the first whistle, hunted in packs, and counter-attacked with the ferocity that has become their trademark under Chivu.

"Today we played well in every aspect. We put pressure on their build-up and accepted that they could cause us problems," Chivu said afterwards. "We counter-attacked with ferocity and were clinical in front of goal. I applaud my players for a performance of maturity and quality."

Maturity was the right word. After the early double, Inter did not chase a third with reckless abandon. They managed the game, kept Como at arm's length, and still created the better chances — Federico Dimarco and Thuram both went close to adding to the lead in the second half. Como, so fluent in midweek, mustered little in response in an uncharacteristically muted display. Their one real moment came late, when Nico Paz clipped the crossbar, a reminder of the quality Fabregas has at his disposal even on a quiet night.

The result matters most for what it does to the table. Inter climb back to second, just one point behind leaders Lazio, who were held to a 1-1 draw at Napoli earlier in the day — a result already reported on SportRush. Only two points now separate Lazio from third-placed Roma, and the Scudetto race, which looked like it might be drifting, is suddenly bunched tight with the international break ahead.

Elsewhere on Sunday, Milan moved into the top four with a 2-1 win at Genoa, Alphadjo Cisse and Christian Pulisic scoring inside the first 20 minutes, while Juventus twice fought back to draw 2-2 at Fiorentina and Atalanta ended a six-match winless run by beating Monza 1-0. But the story of the day belonged to San Siro, where Inter answered their derby defeat the only way that counts — by winning, early, and without ever really being threatened.

Como will recover. A six-match winning run does not disappear because of one bad evening, and the 9-1 win at Lens remains one of the results of the season. But Inter sent a message with this one: the champions of two seasons ago are not going anywhere, and the gap at the top is now a single point. The title race is alive, and it is going to be a long winter.