Nainggolan breaks Inter duck to seal first win of Serie A season

Milan (AFP) – Radja Nainggolan scored on his debut as Inter Milan claimed their first three points of the Serie A season with a 3-0 win in Bologna on Saturday.

Nainggolan missed the first two games of the campaign with injury following his summer move from Roma.

But the 30-year-old Belgian midfielder made amends on his league debut, opening his and Inter’s account at the Stadio Dall’Ara after 66 minutes.

Italy midfielder Antonio Candreva and Croatia’s World Cup runner-up Ivan Perisic added two quickfire goals in the final ten minutes to seal all three points.

The win gives Luciano Spalletti’s side four points from three games, equal on points with Roma who lost 2-1 at AC Milan on Friday. Filippo Inzaghi’s Bologna are stuck on one point, without a single goal scored in three games.

Inter captain and striker Mauro Icardi tried, unsuccessfully, to shake off a muscle strain by warming up before being compelled to watch from the stands, along with Lautaro Martinez.

It left Keita Balde as Inter’s sole striker, but with Nainggolan, Matteo Politano and Perisic in support.

Perisic nodded into the side-netting early with Roberto Gagliardini also firing over for the visitors before Bologna threatened, Filip Helander’s header cleared off the line by Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic.

Nainggolan missed a chance to open the scoring just before the break with a powerful half-volley from the edge of the box flying over.

But the Belgian made no mistake after the break, controlling Politano’s cross to fire past his former Roma teammate Lukasz Skorupski.

Candreva replaced Keita on 79 minutes and three minutes later turned in a low cross from Perisic, the Croatian sealing victory two minutes later.

Champions Juventus play at Parma later on Saturday with Cristiano Ronaldo looking to open his scoring account in Serie A while runners-up Napoli play Sampdoria in Genoa on Sunday.