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• Motta does not see Juventus as Serie A title contenders

  Thiago Motta does not believe Juventus are Serie A title contenders just yet, despite their 4-4 draw with reigning champions Inter.

  With Juventus trailing 4-2, teenager Kenan Yildiz came off the bench to score twice and rescue a point in dramatic fashion.

  It is the third time in the history of these sides that they have shared an eight-goal Serie A clash, though this was the first such occasion since 1961.

  While Juve hit back from a two-goal deficit to avoid defeat against Inter in a league game for the first time since 1978, Motta believes the way the Nerazzurri dominated much of the proceedings shows how far his side away are from challenging for the Scudetto.

  "Not at this moment. We delivered a solid performance against one of the favourites for the Scudetto, alongside Napoli, who have maintained the core of their squad from a year and a half ago," Motta told DAZN.

  "Right now, they’re ahead and capable of competing until the end for the title. While today was a good performance, we need to keep our feet on the ground.

  "We’ll continue on our path, sticking to our ideas and our growth process. We’ll see what we’re capable of when the time comes. I’m being honest; I speak as things are.

  "We sought something more in terms of both play and the right spirit; we wanted a different outcome after a first half filled with unfortunate incidents.

  "They could have increased their lead but didn’t, and in the end, we could have won it. However, we need to understand why we perform well at times and struggle against the opponent's game at others."

  Timothy Weah started in place of Yildiz, and scored in the first half, netting against Inter 25 years and three days after his father George had last scored a league goal against the Nerazzurri.

  "I chose Weah because he could offer something interesting for us in transitions. Kenan can help the team in the second half by providing different options, whether as a winger, midfielder, or striker," Motta said.

  "We know we have young players, but we believe we can perform much better than we did today. It's clear that the many absences may have had an impact; it’s not an excuse, but a fact." 

  Indeed, Juve fielded their youngest starting XI (25 years, 212 days on average) against Inter in Serie A in the three points for a win era (since 1994-95).

• Inzaghi rues missed opportunities in Derby d'Italia thriller

  Simone Inzaghi vented his frustration at Inter's missed opportunities and defensive errors during their 4-4 draw with Juventus in the Derby d'Italia on Sunday. 

  Piotr Zielinski handed Inter the lead from the spot before Dusan Vlahovic and Timothy Weah responded for Juventus with two goals in the space of six first-half minutes.

  Henrikh Mkhitaryan and a second penalty from Zielinski restored Inter's advantage, with Denzel Dumfries notching their fourth eight minutes after the break.

  But substitute Kenan Yildiz struck twice to seal a share of the spoils at the San Siro, becoming the youngest player to score at least two goals in a fixture between the two sides in Serie A.

  However, Inzaghi rued his side's inability to take their chances, having ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) tally of 3.13 compared to Juventus' 2.17. 

  "There is bitterness but as a coach I must analyse and talk to them tomorrow, as the players looked sad in the dressing room," Inzaghi told Sky Sports Italy.

  "It’s frustrating, as we were facing a Juventus side whose greatest strength is defence and we created so many scoring opportunities without winning.

  "We lost our shape a bit, then on the fourth goal we made a series of mistakes. These compromised a match we clearly deserved to win."

  Despite the result, Inzaghi was keen to highlight the positive aspects of his side's display in a game that saw eight goals scored between the two sides for only the third time in Serie A.

  "It is right that the team feels disappointed and angry, but we must also look at the positives, creating nine or 10 clear scoring opportunities against a side that had conceded only once in Serie A this season," he said.

  But Inter's defensive fragility was on show once again at the San Siro. 

  On their way to the title last season, the Nerazzurri conceded just 22 times, but have already let in nine goals from their first nine games this term.

  "We have been conceding goals that are frankly unacceptable. We probably would’ve won this by quite a bit last season," Inzaghi said.

  "It’s a draw, not a defeat, but admittedly it feels a bit like that. I’ll be honest, I’ve never been part of a game like that.

  "There seemed to be no warning of a Juve comeback, maybe I could’ve done more."

• 'Top-class' Middlesbrough pass Norwich test, says Carrick

  Michael Carrick was impressed with Middlesbrough's showing against another top opponent in the Championship after they played out an enthralling 3-3 draw with Norwich City.

  Borja Sainz had given the Canaries a ninth minute lead before Tommy Conway's brace and Finn Azaz's close range effort had Boro in the ascendency at the interval. 

  Conway then saw his penalty saved by George Long after Jose Cordoba fouled Riley McGree, with that moment proving pivotal in the outcome of the contest. 

  Sainz doubled his tally two minutes after Boro's spot-kick with a stunning effort that kissed the underside of the crossbar, before an own-goal by Seny Dieng drew Norwich level.

  The Canaries finished the game with a man less after captain Kenny McLean was shown a straight red card late on, but Middlesbrough were unable to find a winner.

  Despite letting a two-goal lead slip at Carrow Road, Carrick was pleased with his players' efforts in a game he felt his side edged.

  "I thought we were fantastic for the most part, we showed what a good team we are and played some really good football," Carrick told BBC Radio Teesside.

  "We conceded three goals, the third wasn't nice at all but the other two, he put them in the top corner from distance and if they’re going to score like that from there, there's only so much you can do [to stop it].

  "I thought we were pretty much the better team throughout, [although] the momentum swung a little bit towards the end.

  "That’s two games against really good, top opposition in this league and we’ve been the better team in both games.

  "Today was a test in terms of going a goal down but the confidence we showed and togetherness to get through that was top-class."

  For Norwich, meanwhile, the draw ensured they maintained their 11-month unbeaten home record. 

  A win would have put them fifth in the table, but they remain eighth on the same number of points as ninth-placed Boro, both of them still one point adrift of the top six.

  But it was a contest they were perhaps fortunate to claim a point from. The Canaries ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of just 1.1 compared to the visitors' 3.86. 

  "When a game is that hectic, with so many situations in it, then it's hard work for me from minute one to minute 90," Johannes Hoff Thorup told BBC Radio Norfolk

  "We had to be very specific at half-time about what was important for us [to do], very specific with in-game communication to the players because there were so many details to put focus on.

  "The moments we have when we are calm on the ball, especially in their half, the spaces we highlighted before the game opened up and we created chances, or at least got into some dangerous positions."