Inter Milan Vs Pisa [6–2] – Serie A 2025/2026: Federico Dimarco Inspires Goal-Filled Comeback – Tactical Analysis

Inter Milan secured an entertaining win against Pisa in the 22^nd Serie A fixture, a match that featured a total of eight goals.

Pisa surprised by scoring two goals first, but Inter Milan reacted well and turned the tables on Pisa, equalising and then adding to their lead, consolidating top spot in Serie A.

Although things have not been going well on a European level, Inter Milan are continuing their positive run in Serie A with convincing wins, which is bringing them closer to winning the trophy if no surprises occur soon.

On the other hand, Pisa confirmed that they are not easy to beat and could have won this match after taking the initial lead, but failed to do so because they faced a very powerful team.

That said, Pisa should build on their first-half performance and try to improve defensively in the coming games.

In this tactical analysis article, we will explore how Pisa successfully created problems for Inter Milan in the first half, before examining Inter Milan’s in-game changes and the impact of Federico Dimarco on the game.

Inter Milan Vs Pisa Lineups & Formations

Cristian Chivu started the match using Inter Milan’s usual 3-5-2 formation with Yann Sommer in goal behind Yann Bisseck, Stefan de Vrij, and Alessandro Bastoni as the three centre-backs.

Luis Henrique started the match at right wing-back, while Carlos Augusto played as a left wing-back, with Dimarco initially rested.

Piotr Zieliński formed the midfield trio with Petar Sučić and Henrikh Mkhitaryan as the three central midfielders, with an attacking line made up of the duo: Pio Esposito and Lautaro Martínez.

On the other hand, Alberto Gilardino opted for the 5-4-1 formation, with Simone Scuffet as goalkeeper, Arturo Calabresi, Simone Canestrelli, and Francesco Coppola as centre-backs, and both Idrissa Touré and Samuele Angori as wing-backs.

The midfield line was made up of Marius Marin and Michel Aebischer as central midfielders, with Stefano Moreo and Matteo Tramoni as wingers just behind the striker Henrik Wendel Meister.

Pisa Man-Marking & Exploitation Of Inter Milan Errors

Pisa relied heavily on Tramoni and Moreo for high pressing and continuous attempts to disturb Inter Milan’s initial build-up.

Although they suffered initially and were unable to stop Inter Milan from reaching their own half, Pisa soon succeeded in embarrassing Inter Milan’s goalkeeper and defensive line.

They exploited the Inter Milan defenders’ backward pass to the goalkeeper and tried to force the goalkeeper into opting for a long pass rather than a short one, since they did their best to advance and mark every player in Inter Milan’s half.

Their disciplined man-marking plan was effective in this action, as it forced Sommer to make a poor pass to Zieliński, creating confusion for the midfielder and allowing Moreo to intercept it.

Stefano Moreo Crucial Decision-Making

Moreo was extremely decisive and very intelligent, making quick decisions as he noticed Sommer was out of his goal.

He did not waste time controlling the ball; he relied on his goalscoring instinct and opted for a first-time, curved shot that went inside the net.

The goal illustrates the importance of disciplined man-marking and the rewarding high-pressing system of Pisa.

It also confirms that, no matter which team you are playing against, using high pressing effectively and with discipline can always force errors in the opponent’s half.

Inter Milan are known for being one of the best teams in the world in terms of build-up from the back and in resisting high pressure.

Despite that, they committed a crucial mistake in this action against Pisa and were immediately punished for it.

Pisa Exploitation Of Inter Milan Poor Set-Piece Marking

Pisa were able to quickly add a second goal by exploiting Inter Milan’s passive marking during corners, which complicated their defence.

It was very strange to see a veteran defender like De Vrij lose his direct opponent without reacting or even trying to follow him.

In fact, Moreo waited for his teammate to execute the corner, and at that moment, he made a circular run towards the near post, leaving De Vrij in his spot, then advanced to meet the ball in the perfect spot and with great timing.

Inter Milan’s defending in such situations is proving worrying, and I Nerazzurri should work harder to avoid them, as preventing this goal required disciplined man-marking rather than passive zonal marking.

Cristian Chivu Crucial Early Changes & Dimarco Attacking Impact

Inter Milan started the match with an all-out attack, maintaining continuous possession inside Pisa’s own half and making repeated attempts to reach their penalty box quickly and efficiently.

They relied on both wings to do so, with consistent overlaps and penetrations from wing-backs and centre-backs on both the left and right.

Their reliance on the advancing of right and left centre-backs was also useful, as Bisseck was very close to scoring Inter Milan’s first goal following a solo effort and penetration from the middle, excluding three Pisa players from the box and finishing out of target.

And during the time Pisa scored their two goals, Inter Milan’s attempts lacked crucial decision-making inside the box, despite the excellent work from Esposito in terms of controlling and keeping the ball at his feet before serving a player coming from behind.

Esposito is becoming increasingly valuable as a stationary striker, gaining more confidence and knowing how to win duels when playing with his back to the goal.

Federico Dimarco Impact Inside The Final Third

Following Pisa’s two goals, Chivu decided to make early changes, substituting Dimarco for Henrique, as he sensed the need to react quickly.

The addition of Dimarco would help the team accelerate in transitions and guarantee more quality in playmaking.

Furthermore, the early change was made because Chivu was not satisfied with Henrique’s attacking support, given that the latter’s movements were asymmetric to the rest of the team during attacking transitions.

In fact, Dimarco’s subbing was immediately impactful as the latter did not hesitate to join the box during the first created occasion and got very close to scoring.

The numerical superiority that Dimarco guaranteed for Inter Milan inside the final third helped the team find more reliable solutions for goalscoring and finishing, as that helped created more confusion within Pisa’s defensive line.

The following action highlights the impact of Dimarco’s advancing and how Pisa were not able to keep up with Inter Milan’s numerical superiority, leaving Dimarco unmarked inside the box and allowing him to shoot on target.

In fact, this action also highlights how Inter Milan attacked with several players inside the box, including both strikers, de Vrij, and Dimarco, who was intelligent enough to exploit Moreo’s distant and passive marking to advance to the far post and wait for the cross to reach him.

Federico Dimarco Playmaking Quality

A few minutes after Inter Milan scored a penalty, I Nerazzurri were able to add a second equalising goal, mainly thanks to Dimarco, whose impact in this match was crucial.

This match proved that the left wing-back is indispensable in Inter Milan’s system, as he guarantees systematic link-up play with most of the team’s players, moves well without the ball in the opponent’s half, and, more importantly, provides very accurate and dangerous crosses and key passes regularly.

The second goal action highlights the crossing quality of Dimarco and his impeccable potential in providing very inviting crosses for goalscoring.

What proves Dimarco’s crossing quality even further is the fact that this was his first cross of the match.

The strong understanding and chemistry between him and the attacking players, particularly Martínez, in this action further confirm the importance of playing with the starting lineup in such tricky games.

Spotting the Argentinian striker’s movement without the ball and providing him a perfectly-oriented cross to meet his header at the right timing and in the perfect spot can only prove that both players are used to applying such actions extensively during the trainings.

In fact, Inter Milan does not actually have reliable substitutes for Dimarco, and that’s why Chivu will have to deal well with this situation until finding a proper replacement with similar qualities to those of Dimarco.

What is certain is that Augusto does not have the level of Dimarco, but the most Chivu can do in this situation is try to upgrade Augusto’s level and quality, and, more importantly, build more chemistry between him and the rest of the midfielders/attacking players during training.

This would progressively help improving the attacking support quality of Augusto when Inter Milan will need to use him in replacement of Dimarco like in this match.

The same applies to the right wing-back position, as Henrique does not have a quality similar to that of Denzel Dumfries, given that both wing-backs’ positions are crucial to Inter Milan’s attacking system, especially during transitions.

Inter Milan were soon able to add a third goal thanks to Bastoni’s advancing on the left wing, and Esposito’s excellent finishing, thanks to a powerful header, confirming that he is becoming even more powerful in aerial duels and in offensive duels in general as he is making use of his physical strength and height even more intelligently than before.

As the game went on and Inter Milan got more confidence in their ability to secure the win while Pisa’s level dropped both in attack and defence, Dimarco continued showing why he is extremely crucial to Inter Milan’s attacking phase as he scored a volley that highlights his goalscoring skills and decisive positioning inside the box as well.

Conclusion

The match ended with a festival of goals from Inter Milan, in a match that further highlighted this team’s exceptional attacking solutions and weapons.

In particular, the involvement of Dimarco made the difference for the Nerazzurri and helped keep the team’s attacking attempts balanced and efficient.

At the same time, it will be fundamental for Inter Milan to consider fixing their defensive errors for the upcoming games, as the team started the match well but got penalised for two defensive mistakes.