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Mauro Icardi's 40 days in wilderness ends with rejection not redemption

The Inter striker appeared to have been reintegrated smoothly back into the squad but Luciano Spalletti’s decision not to play him in the defeat to Lazio seemed strangeInter were poised, at last, to put this season’s most disruptive soap opera behind them. Mauro Icardi had returned to first-team training on Tuesday, ending a 40-day absence that began when he was stripped of the club captaincy. It felt like an opportune moment: spirits were high following a win over Milan, and half the squad was away on international duty, including colleagues with whom he had clashed.The striker appeared to reintegrate smoothly. News outlets circulated videos of him passing the ball to Ivan Perisic – his purported personal rival – during a...

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Inter take the Milan derby spoils and leap over rivals in Serie A standings | Paolo Bandini

Defeat was hardly catastrophic for Milan, but they have failed to beat Inter now in any of their last six Serie A meetingsThe choreography produced by Milan’s Ultras for Sunday’s derby had been months in the making. As kick-off approached, a colossal depiction of Hellboy was unveiled: stretching from the top of the second tier in San Siro’s Curva Sud all the way down to ground level. The demon crashed his fist on to a pile of skulls, interwoven with an Inter scarf. “Send them to Hell,” read the accompanying slogan.The banner left on display in the same section at full-time cannot have taken quite so long to prepare: a single word spelled out in letters as tall as your...

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Mauro Icardi, Internazionale and the return of unwelcome headlines | Paolo Bandini

Inter dug deep to see off Sampdoria, but without their forward after he was stripped of the captaincyThe first time the big screen cut to Mauro Icardi, it stayed with him for only a few seconds. He had arrived just before kick-off for Inter’s game against Sampdoria, taking a seat beside his wife, and agent, Wanda in the stands at San Siro. Neither seemed to notice when the cameras picked them out, provoking brief jeers from the home crowd.But the camera lingered a little longer the second time around. Play had stopped, and the mood inside the stadium was restless, with the score still goalless after the interval. This time the whistles were ear-splitting. Wanda glanced up at the screen,...

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One death, alleged racist abuse and a Boxing Day of shame in Serie A

A fan was killed before the Inter v Napoli match while Kalidou Koulibaly faced alleged racist abuse from the stands during itIt should have been an occasion to celebrate. For the first time since 1971, a round of Serie A fixtures was being played on 26 December – St Stephen’s Day, to most Italians, though the sporting press seemed eager to embrace the English lexicon of “Boxing Day football”. More than a quarter of a million fans attended games up and down the country, and many were treated to entertaining fare.In Bergamo, Atalanta became only the second team this season to take points off Juventus. Despite falling behind in the second minute, they roared back to lead 2-1 and appeared...

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Radja Nainggolan takes fall for Inter’s struggles but is not solely responsible | Paolo Bandini

Inter have made a statement with suspending the Belgian but they should have been more diligent before paying €24m plus two quality players for his servicesRadja Nainggolan crashed his car on the day he came to Inter. A tyre burst on his Ferrari Lusso as he was making the drive north from Rome to Milan for pre-season training, causing him to veer into a motorway guardrail. The accident was not his fault and yet, looking back now, it does feel like an omen for everything that was to come. Related: Magical Marco Reus sends Dortmund racing clear to crown his golden 2018 Related: Andros Townsend, Ole Gunnar Solskjær and a one-step penalty – Football Weekly Chievo 1 Internazionale 1; Empoli...

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