Inter Milan claimed their first victory in this season’s revamped Champions League on Tuesday, cruising to a 4-0 win over Red Star Belgrade at San Siro. Hakan Calhanoglu opened the scoring with a superb free-kick in the 11th minute, setting the tone for a dominant performance in rainy conditions.
Marko Arnautovic added a second goal on the hour mark, while captain Lautaro Martinez scored Inter’s third in the 71st minute. Martinez then won a penalty, which Mehdi Taremi converted for his first Inter Milan goal, completing a resounding win.
Martinez, who was set to take the spot-kick himself, generously handed the opportunity to Taremi, allowing the Iranian forward to net his debut goal for the club. “I’m happy to score tonight and grateful to my teammates. Our goal is to go far in this competition, step by step,” Taremi said in his post-match interview.
The win moves Inter onto four points in the group stage standings, keeping them among the top eight teams fighting for direct qualification to the last 16. While it’s too early to predict Inter’s final group position, their performance, coupled with a 0-0 draw at Manchester City, suggests they are in strong form.
Red Star, meanwhile, sit at the bottom of the standings after two consecutive defeats. Coach Vladan Milojevic expressed frustration with his team’s defensive mistakes.
Inter’s victory came against the backdrop of off-field turmoil, with several figures from the club’s ultras arrested on Monday as part of a police investigation into matchday activities. The charges range from ticket touting to mafia-related criminal conspiracies. However, both Inter and AC Milan have been described as “damaged” parties in the investigation, with no involvement in the alleged crimes.
Despite the chaos and the heavy rain, Inter’s fans, particularly in the Curva Nord section, passionately supported their team from start to finish. Calhanoglu’s sublime free-kick early in the match set the stadium alight, with the hosts controlling much of the game thereafter.
Arnautovic and Denzel Dumfries both had goals ruled out for offside, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan missed two excellent chances to extend Inter’s lead. Arnautovic finally scored the second goal after Mehdi Taremi’s relentless pressing won the ball back from Red Star’s Rade Krunic.
With the Serbian side faltering, Martinez netted his third goal of the season before setting up Taremi’s penalty to cap off a dominant display from the Italian champions.