Inter’s trip to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris to face Genoa was supposed to be a routine checkpoint in their Serie A title charge. Instead, it turned into a tense, tactical battle that said as much about Inter’s resilience as it did about Genoa’s refusal to roll over in front of their home crowd.
A High-Stakes Night in Genoa
Inter arrived in Liguria with clear pressure on their shoulders: they were locked in a tight race at the top of Serie A, chasing
AC Milan (32 points) and
Napoli (31), with Inter sitting just behind on
30 points with a game in hand before kickoff. Genoa, meanwhile, hovered just above the relegation battle on
14 points, desperate to turn gritty performances into real results.
The match was part of
Matchday 15 of the 2025/26 Serie A season, slotted into a busy weekend that also featured AC Milan vs Sassuolo and Bologna vs Juventus. Coming off a draining Champions League tie against Liverpool, Inter had to rotate and manage fatigue while still delivering three points on the road.
Inter Dominate the Ball, Genoa Dig In
From the opening whistle, the pattern was clear:
Inter dominated possession, Genoa defended deep and waited.- Inter held an enormous
71% possession against Genoa’s
29%.
- The Nerazzurri racked up
11 shots to Genoa’s 2, with
5 on target for Inter and
none for Genoa.
- Inter completed
292 passes to Genoa’s
104, underlining just how much of the game was played in the hosts’ half.
Genoa, however, excelled at one thing: survival. They made
17 clearances to Inter’s 13 and stayed compact, forcing Inter to work extremely hard for every opening. Corners were scarce, with Inter earning just
one and Genoa none, a sign of how few truly chaotic box moments there were despite Inter’s territorial control.
Key Moments and Tactical Battles
Inter’s approach leaned heavily on patience, width, and technical superiority in midfield. Nicolò Barella, who picked up a yellow card in the second half, embodied the team’s intensity and edge in the middle of the park.
Manager Simone Inzaghi turned to his bench for a spark late on:
-
Henrikh Mkhitaryan replaced Petar Sucic in the 74th minute.
-
Marcus Thuram came on for young forward Francesco Pio Esposito at the same time, adding power and movement up front.
These substitutions underlined Inter’s depth — a key weapon in a long title race — but also how stubborn Genoa were defensively. Every passing lane was contested, every second ball fought for.
What the Result Means for the Table
The match unfolded in the context of a fiercely competitive top four.
| Team | Games Played | Points |
|------------|--------------|--------|
| AC Milan | 15 | 32 |
| Napoli | 15 | 31 |
| Inter | 14 | 30 |
| AS Roma | 14 | 27 |
Genoa, with
3 wins, 5 draws, 6 losses and a -6 goal difference, sat on 14 points, level with Cagliari and Parma in the crowded lower half of the table. For them, even a hard-fought point against a title contender would have been valuable both psychologically and mathematically.
For Inter, every away trip like this is a potential slip that can define a season. When margins at the top are this tight, grinding out results at hostile grounds is often what separates champions from also-rans.
Bigger Picture: Inter’s Title Credentials Tested
This Genoa–Inter clash fits a clear pattern in Inter’s season:
-
They dominate territorially and statistically.-
Opponents increasingly sit deep and play reactive football.-
Inter must find solutions through rotations, late substitutions, and individual quality.The fact that Inter could control a tricky away match so comprehensively in terms of shots and possession, even after a draining European night, is a strong indicator of their physical and tactical level. But it also exposes the thin margin for error: one lapse, one counter, and a match like this can flip on its head.
Genoa, for their part, showed there is a blueprint to at least disrupt the Nerazzurri: deep blocks, aggressive clearances, and a willingness to suffer without the ball. As more mid-table sides adopt similar approaches, Inter’s ability to stay patient and clinical will be under constant examination.
What to Watch Next
Looking ahead, a few storylines are worth tracking:
-
Inter’s fitness and rotation: With Champions League commitments and the Scudetto race, Inzaghi’s squad management will be crucial.
-
Genoa’s survival fight: Performances like this suggest they can frustrate bigger sides; the question is whether they can turn resistance into wins against direct rivals.
-
The title race dynamics: With AC Milan and Napoli slightly ahead on points but more games played, Inter’s performances in fixtures like this could swing the entire season.
In a league where every point at the top and bottom matters, Genoa vs Inter was more than just another date on the calendar. It was a snapshot of modern Serie A: tactical, tense, and decided as much by structure and stamina as by star power.
Sources
1. Genoa vs Inter LIVE
2. Genoa vs. Inter Milan (15 Dec, 2025) Live Score - - ESPN (SG)
3. Genoa vs. Inter Milan - Boxscore - Live Score - December 14, 2025
