Perhaps it's hyperbole to suggest that Inter's entire season came down to just one game but that was pretty much the reality of their 2017/18 Serie A campaign. The Champions League qualification showdown with Lazio on the final day provided a dramatic and ultimately euphoric conclusion to what had been a rather indifferent season for the Nerazzurri up until that point.
Having finished strongly in his second spell at Roma, Luciano Spalletti seemed to arrive at the San Siro with momentum behind him and Inter were touted as contenders for the Scudetto in the early weeks of the season. Indeed, they went unbeaten in their first sixteen games and top of the table after a credible goalless draw at Juventus Stadium in early December but then the wheels came off. Just one win in ten games from December to February brought any hope of a title challenge to a screeching halt and Inter suddenly risked not even finishing in the top four.
Agonising home defeats to Juventus and Sassuolo during the run-in left the Nerazzurri's Champions League hopes hanging by a thread and they went to Stadio Olimpico on the final day needing to win. It looked bleak when they were 2-1 down but Spalletti's men showed the strength of character to fight back and seal a dramatic late victory, booking their place in Europe's premier club competition for the first time in seven seasons.
Despite the drama of the final day, there wasn't a lot else to get excited about when it came to Inter Milan. Even when they were winning games at the top end of the table, they were never convincing or entertaining. Without the 29 Serie A goals of Mauro Icardi who finished joint-top scorer in the league, who knows where they'd be? The Argentine requires more service than he was getting from a midfield which lacks creativity outside of Ivan Perisic, although Marcelo Brozovic ended the season well in that regard with nine assists.
Milan Skriniar proved to be the signing of the summer for the Nerazzurri with some immense performances at the back but they need more recruits like him to improve and, with the lure of Champions League football now, they may be able to get them.
