Inter Milan Vs Sassuolo [2-1] Serie A 2025/2026: Cristian Chivu Attack Overcomes Fabio Grosso Tactics – Tactical Analysis

Inter Milan faced Sassuolo for the fourth fixture of the new Serie A season, and the game ended with a 2-1 win for I Nerazzurri, though Sassuolo did not make life easy for Inter.

Inter Milan were compact and attentive enough to avoid a loss or a draw this time against I Neroverdi.

Although they conceded a goal, they were able to protect their lead during the final minutes of the match, securing a very important win that allows them to take a breather and work more calmly for the upcoming games.

Inter have not started the season well.

They failed to maintain a series of positive results; after convincingly winning their first match against Torino, they suffered losses against Udinese and Juventus.

These two losses were painful and have negatively impacted the atmosphere within the team.

Such losses early in the season can only create doubt and raise the level of tension for everyone.

With crucial wins against Ajax in the UEFA Champions League and Sassuolo in Serie A, Inter Milan started recovering from their negative period and are gaining more confidence, which will be much needed for their upcoming games.

On the other hand, Sassuolo did their best to trouble Inter Milan at San Siro and were very close to snatching a draw, had it not been for their inability to capitalise on the chances created, due to inaccurate finishing and a lack of chance creation in this match.

Despite that, Sassuolo were still able to score against Inter Milan and pose a threat whenever they reached the final third.

That said, they also suffered from their inability to resist or surpass Inter Milan’s first high pressing, which limited their playmaking process and prevented them from creating numerous chances, especially during the first half.

In this tactical analysis of the Serie A match between Inter Milan and Sassuolo, we will focus mainly on Inter Milan’s attacking ideas, reliance on transitions, and the impact of Carlos Augusto, Petar Sučić, and Francesco Pio Esposito, who were extremely useful during this match.

Inter Milan Vs Sassuolo Lineups

Cristian Chivu started the match according to the team’s usual 3-5-2 formation, but with unusual starting names like Esposito and Augusto, who were very important from both a defensive and an attacking perspective in the spot of Alessandro Bastoni.

Chivu also preferred to start with a different goalkeeper, opting for Josep Martínez instead of Yann Sommer.

He relied on Francesco Acerbi, Manuel Akanji, and Augusto in defence.

The midfield was made up of Federico Dimarco and Denzel Dumfries as wing-backs, Hakan Çalhanoğlu as a regista or a defensive midfielder, with Nicolò Barella and Sučić playing as central midfielders and helping a lot during the attacking transitions, as they were the ones who led those transitions and accompanied the ball progression until reaching the box.

The attacking duo was also new compared to the start of the season, as Chivu experimented with the Esposito and Marcus Thuram duo for the first time as starters in the game against Ajax, confirming it against Sassuolo.

In both games, Inter Milan succeeded in winning, thanks not only to the players but also to the whole team’s performance.

Indeed, this duo had a significant impact and contributed to the teams attacking capabilities, which we will explore in detail in this analysis.

For Sassuolo, Fabio Grosso used the 4-3-3 formation: Arijanet Muric as goalkeeper, Woyo Coulibaly as right-back, Jay Idzes and Tarik Muharemović as centre-backs, and Josh Doig as left-back.

The midfield was made up of Nemanja Matić, Aster Vranckx, and Ismaël Koné.

At the same time, the three attacking players were Domenico Berardi as a right winger, Armand Laurienté as a left winger, and Andrea Pinamonti as the team’s main striker.

Inter Milan Dangerous Attacking Transitions

Inter Milan were immediately capable of disturbing Sassuolo thanks to their nearly automatic attacking transitions system, which relies on very quick yet accurate passing, ball protection, and fast movements without the ball from specific players.

Çalhanoğlu was the one who had to initiate the transition with the first pass, then one of Sučić or Barella were capable of protecting the ball before passing it to each other or to one of the wing-backs who had to accelerate and provide passing options on the wings.

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