Lukaku on target again as Inter goes 11 clear
Romelu Lukaku maintained his impressive scoring run to help Inter to a 2-1 win over Sassuolo at San Siro that moves Antonio Conte's side 11 points clear at the top of Serie A.
The Belgium international scored for a fifth game running for club and country to open the scoring after 10 minutes and Inter did not look back in the rescheduled clash.
Lukaku played in strike partner Lautaro Martinez for the home side's second and they held on for another win after Hamed Junior Traore had set up a nervy finale with a well-taken strike five minutes from time.
With this latest victory, Inter become just the second side in Serie A history - after Milan in 1989-1990 - to win its first 10 games in the second half of a campaign.
Lukaku scored the only goal for Inter in the 1-0 win over Bologna last weekend and picked up from where he left off with Serie A goal number 21 of the season early on here.
Ashley Young sent in a right-footed cross from the left and former Manchester United team-mate Lukaku guided the ball into the far corner with a header from 10 yards.
Sassuolo was without a number of players through coronavirus concerns but would have been level if not for a fine Milan Skriniar block to thwart Jeremie Boga in the box.
The lively Boga tested Samir Handanovic the other side of the half-time interval as the visitor, which held Roma in its last match, started to pose more of a threat.
But Martinez gave Inter further breathing space by burying a low shot past Andrea Consigli once picked out by Lukaku on the counter.
Sassuolo felt Stefan de Vrij pulled back on the shirt of skipper Giacomo Raspadori in the build-up to Martinez's strike, but VAR did not feel the need to intervene.
Inter's win was not without a scare, though, as Traore curled a fine finish away from Handanovic following an Achraf Hakimi error, though there was to be no late leveller at San Siro.
