Inter 1-1 Atalanta: Controversial Krstovic equaliser hands hosts heavy blow in Serie A title race

Nikola Krstovic came off the bench to score a contentious late equaliser and earn Atalanta a 1-1 draw with Inter at San Siro, leaving the hosts winless in their last three matches across competitions.

Inter’s title hopes had already taken a blow last weekend with a 1-0 defeat to rivals AC Milan in the Derby della Madonnina, and Cristian Chivu’s side failed to respond convincingly on Saturday.

Pio Esposito broke the deadlock after 26 minutes, finishing powerfully from a tight angle off the left after Gianluca Scamacca had earlier forced a nervy save from Yann Sommer.

Marcus Thuram should have doubled Inter’s lead just past the hour mark when Henrikh Mkhitaryan sent him through on goal, but Marco Carnesecchi produced a superb save to deny the Frenchman.

Though the result seemed safe, Atalanta persevered and enjoyed a fruitful final 20 minutes as Kamaldeen Sulemana fired off target moments before Krstovic struck.

Sulemana sparked a swift counter-attack into Inter’s final third, pushing Denzel Dumfries down in the process, and though his initial effort was saved by Sommer, Krstovic was on hand to tuck away the rebound.

Inter were left furious, believing Dumfries had been fouled in the build-up, as a lengthy VAR review ended with the goal being awarded to Atalanta.

The result leaves the Nerazzurri eight points clear of Milan, who face Lazio on Sunday, while Atalanta sit seventh.

Full-time@Gate pic.twitter.com/vMVDSw2wjp

— Inter (@Inter_en) March 14, 2026

Data Debrief: Inter held back once again

Inter have failed to win three games in a row across competitions (D2 L1) for the first time in almost one year, with their last such instance coming in a run of five in April 2025 (D2 L3).

Despite being held to a draw, Chivu’s side were dominant for much of the match and will feel they should have taken all three points.

They ended with 1.58 expected goals (xG) and were made to pay for some profligacy in the final third, while Atalanta managed 1.12 xG of their own.