Viktoria Plzen 0-2 Inter: Dzeko and Dumfries get Nerazzurri up and running

Defeat
to
Bayern
Munich
last
Wednesday
meant
Inter
needed
to
respond
in
the
Czech
Republic,
and
they
never
looked
likely
to
drop
points
after
Dzeko
swept
home
in
the
first
half.

Pavel
Bucha’s
straight
red
card
cemented
Inter’s
superiority,
with
Dumfries
making
the
points
safe
when
Dzeko
turned
provider
with
20
minutes
remaining.

With
Simone
Inzaghi’s
men
facing
criticism
after
an
inconsistent
start
to
the
season,
the
win
provides
a
welcome
boost
ahead
of
the
daunting
prospect
of
back-to-back
meetings
with
Group
C
rivals
Barcelona.

Inter
needed
just
20
minutes
to
turn
their
dominance
of
possession
into
a
deserved
lead
–
Dzeko
tucking
a
neat
finish
into
the
bottom-right
corner.

Dzeko
could
have
had
a
second
when
Marcelo
Brozovic
slipped
him
through
on
goal,
but
the
forward’s
low
effort
was
well
saved
by
Jindrich
Stanek.

Plzen
were
unable
to
test
Andre
Onana
despite
improving
before
the
break,
and
were
indebted
to
Stanek
for
saving
Milan
Skriniar’s
glancing
header
at
full
stretch
three
minutes
into
the
second
half.

Dumfries
missed
a
golden
chance
when
he
nodded
over
the
crossbar
from
six
yards
out,
but
Plzen’s
chances
of
a
comeback
were
left
in
tatters
by
Bucha’s
reckless
challenge
on
Nicolo
Barella,
which
saw
him
receive
his
marching
orders
following
a
VAR
review.

The
depleted
hosts
were
put
out
of
their
misery
in
the
70th
minute,
Dumfries
making
amends
as
he
latched
onto
Dzeko’s
pass
and
lifted
a
finish
beyond
Stanek.

What
does
it
mean?
Nerazzurri
off
the
mark

Inter’s
meek
defeat
to
Bayern
led
to
an
apology
from
chief
executive
Giuseppe
Marotta,
and
the
presence
of
two
European
heavyweights
in
Group
C
meant
the
Nerazzurri
were
under
genuine
pressure
ahead
of
the
trip
to
Plzen.

But
Inzaghi’s
side
produced
the
goods
to
boost
their
qualification
hopes,
ensuring
Inter
have
still
only
started
one
Champions
League
campaign
with
back-to-back
losses
(under
Roberto
Mancini
in
2006-07)
in
the
process.

Dzeko
steps
up

With
Romelu
Lukaku
injured
and
Lautaro
Martinez
starting
on
the
bench,
Inter’s
back-up
strikers
were
handed
an
opportunity
to
shine
on
Tuesday.

Dzeko
became
the
oldest
player
to
play
a
Champions
League
game
for
Inter
for
over
a
decade
last
time
out
(since
Javier
Zanetti
v
Marseille
in
March
2012),
but
his
cultured
finish
demonstrated
the
former
Manchester
City
and
Roma
striker
still
has
the
quality
to
contribute.

Since
Dzeko
joined
Inter
in
August
2021,
only
Martinez
(28)
has
bettered
his
tally
of
19
goals
for
the
club
in
all
competitions.

No
joy
for
Plzen

Few
would
have
held
out
any
hope
for
Viktoria
Plzen
after
they
were
drawn
into
a
group
containing
Inter,
Barcelona
and
Bayern,
and
their
back-to-back
defeats
have
done
little
to
reverse
perceptions
of
them
being
Group
C
whipping
boys.

Plzen
have
shipped
51
goals
in
just
20
Champions
League
matches,
becoming
just
the
second
side
to
bring
up
an
unwanted
century
in
so
few
games;
Malmo
conceded
their
50th
Champions
League
goal
in
their
18th
outing.

What’s
next?

Inter
travel
to
Udinese
for
their
next
Serie
A
outing
on
Sunday,
while
Plzen
host
Slavia
Prague
in
the
Czech
First
League.