Simone Inzaghi says Joaquin Correa "showed what he can do" as he inspired Inter to a 5-0 win at Verona on Saturday.

The Argentine made his first start of the season, scoring a goal, registering two assists and striking the woodwork twice, as he stepped in for the absent Lautaro Martinez and helped Inter move top of the table.

Each of Correa's three away goals for Inter in Serie A have come at the Bentegodi against Verona, while he both scored and assisted in a single Serie A match for only the second time, after July 2020, for Lazio against Brescia.

"Correa deserved this chance for how he's been working since June, he showed what he can do," Inzaghi told a press conference.

"I'm happy for him. In addition to being a great player, he's a good guy who continued with his work despite some mistrust."

Inter scored at least five goals in the first half of an away league game for only the second time in their history in Serie A, after their 5-1 win against Sampdoria in the first 45 minutes of play back in March 1964.

Last season, Correa was sent on a one-year loan to Marseille and was expected to leave Inter for good as the French club had an option to buy the player.

Upon his return, the 30-year-old made three appearances in the first 12 league games, entering from the bench at Monza, Udinese and Roma before he was selected to pair up with Marcus Thuram from the start against Verona.

Correa opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a chipped finish after a precise pass from Thuram. He then returned the favour and teed the Frenchman up to double the lead in the 22nd, before setting up Yann Bisseck for the fifth before the break.

"It wasn't difficult because my team-mates helped me and were happy when I scored," Correa said.

"I wanted to do the back heel for Bisseck, but there was also a bit of luck. There are a lot of good guys here, we have to continue like this."

Inter next host RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Tuesday, and they may still be without Martinez, who fell sick when he returned from international duty.

"We need to see how the virus evolves," Inzaghi said. "Last night he had chills and this morning he had a fever of almost 38 degrees.

"I had [the same virus] too, skipping training on Monday and Tuesday. In any case, he would have been [resting] on the bench today even if he had been here. We'll see."

Martinez scored in both of Argentina's World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay (2-1) and Peru (1-0).

Inter hammered lowly Verona 5-0 away from home on Saturday to move top of the Serie A table, with all five goals coming in the first half.

The hosts could easily have taken the lead through Casper Tengstedt just six minutes in as he struck the post after causing chaos in the box, but Inter sparked to life after that.

Joaquin Correa rattled the crossbar moments later, and then opened the scoring after 17 minutes, finishing off a lovely team move by chipping Lorenzo Montipo.

Having set up the opener, Marcus Thuram added a quick-fire double; twice in three minutes, he took the goalkeeper out of the game with clever play before picking out the back of the net.

Substitute Stefan de Vrij fired their fourth past Montipo before Yann Bisseck managed to pick out the top corner despite initially tripping over the ball in the 41st minute.

The second half was a subdued affair, though Correa almost scored another, but instead smacked the crossbar for a second time.

Inter leapfrogged Napoli, who do not play until Sunday, as they moved into first with 28 points. Verona are 14th on 12 points.

Data Debrief: Full-throttle first half

It was a pretty much perfect first half from Simone Inzaghi's side, and it gave the manager a chance to rest some key players with a Champions League tie ahead of them in midweek.

Inter scored five goals in the first half of an away league game for only the second time in their history in Serie A - after the 5-1 score against Sampdoria in the first 45 minutes of play back in March 1964.

The visitors scored with all five of their shots on target in the first period and outperformed their 2.79 expected goals (xG) by some margin.

Correa has scored in a Serie A game 756 days after his last goal in the top-flight, on 29th October 2022, against Sampdoria, at Meazza. Meanwhile, all three of his away goals have come against Verona at Bentegodi.

Thiago Motta was delighted with Juventus' willingness to take risks after his side ran out 3-0 winners over Hellas Verona. 

Juve followed up their 3-0 win over Como by dispatching Verona by the same scoreline on Monday.

Dusan Vlahovic scored twice, with Nicolo Savona netting Juve's other goal as the Bianconeri started a Serie A campaign with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2019-20.

And Motta believes a high-risk, high-reward strategy is the way forward.

"You can see the group's attitude from the way they press the opponent," he told DAZN.

"They take risks, but if you recover the ball it's a big advantage.

"This phase of the game is important, we need everyone. Today our forwards worked hard and well, having this balance is very important because it leads us to play games like this."

Motta also had individual praise for Juve's "leader" Vlahovic.

"A positive leader in the group," Motta said of the striker, who has now scored six Serie A goals against Verona.

"He played for the team, doing a lot of movement and above all he is a player who knows how to score goals. I am satisfied with him, he must continue like this.

"Congratulations to Dusan, but also to all the others who applied good pressure allowing us to score."

Vlahovic missed several chances against Como, but found his goalscoring touch this time around.

"I was a bit unlucky with Como, but today the goals arrived and I'm happy with the attitude of the team," he said.

"The results are the consequence of the work we do."

Dusan Vlahovic scored twice to help Juventus secure a comfortable 3-0 victory at Verona in Serie A on Monday.

Nicolo Savona thought he had marked his first start for the club with an early goal, slotting into the bottom-right corner, but he had strayed well offside. 

Vlahovic then put Juve in front in the 28th minute with a low shot from around the penalty spot before Savona did hit the back of the net with a looping header into the far post.

The Serbian forward then made it 3-0 from the spot following half-time, after Juve were awarded a penalty for Jackson Tchatchoua's foul on Samuel Mbangula.

Juventus are the only side to win their first two games in Serie A and Thigao Motta's men currently lead the standings with six points.

Data Debrief: Vlahovic off the mark

After failing to hit the back of the net in their Serie A opener, Vlahovic's wait for a first goal of the season did not last long on Monday, scoring after 28 minutes.

The Serb has scored multiple goals in more games than any other player in Serie A over the last six seasons (18 since 2019-10), followed by Lautaro Martinez (17) and Ciro Immobile (16) in this period. 

Meanwhile, Kenan Yildiz (born in 2005) is the youngest player in the top 5 European leagues to have provided more than one assist (two) so far this season.

Juventus have confirmed the signing of winger Nicolas Gonzalez from Fiorentina in a reported €32 million move.

Gonzalez finished last season with 14 goal contributions in Serie A as Fiorentina finished eighth and reached the final of the Europa Conference League for the second year running.

The forward also helped Argentina win the Copa America in the off-season, and on Sunday, completed his switch to Turin.

Speaking of Gonzalez's addition, as well as the impending signing of Francisco Conceicao from Porto, new Juve boss Thiago Motta said: "They are strong players which is why they will come to our squad. Every player that arrives will give us a big hand to be competitive until the end.

"That is the case for those already here and those who will arrive."

Motta's team started their Serie A campaign with a 3-0 win over Cesc Fabregas' Como last week, and face Hellas Verona on Monday.

"We remain with our feet on the ground after the first day of the championship," Motta said on Sunday.

"Now we are on the second day, we face a team that is in good form after their victory against a team that is a serious candidate for the Scudetto.

"We played at home against Como, which was a good performance and a good result for us. Tomorrow I expect a different story and we have to be ready for everything.

"You look at it from the outside but from the inside my life is beautiful. I wake up early with great energy and enthusiasm to come to training.

"I find myself with fantastic people who have that same enthusiasm. I find myself with guys who arrive with a huge desire to improve."

Antonio Conte apologised to Napoli's supporters after his side were humbled 3-0 at Verona in Serie A, taking responsibility for Sunday's opening loss.

Conte and Napoli endured a dreadful start to the campaign as Verona scored three goals in the second half, with the 2023 Scudetto champions unable to prevent the hosts from creating a plethora of chances.

Dailon Livramento opened the scoring after 50 minutes before a late double from substitute Daniel Mosquera condemned Conte to a torrid start in his first game back in charge of Napoli.

"We immediately let Verona have a shot at the start of the second half, and in the second instance we went behind," Conte told Sky Sports Italia.

"Then we melted like snow in the sun. What I feel like saying is that we should apologise to the Neapolitan supporters, who follow us with such passion. I am the coach and it is right that I take full responsibility."

Conte acknowledged serious work would be needed to bring Napoli up to the standard he aimed for.

"[It was] a performance that shows we need to work hard in every aspect," the Italian added. "I came to Napoli with lots of enthusiasm, with great desire. If I can help Napoli, I will."

The 55-year-old coach is desperate to seek additional reinforcements before the transfer window closes.

"On the market, one, two, three, four could arrive, as many as the club want to sign," the former Chelsea manager continued. "The problems must be faced head-on, and they are not necessarily easy issues to fix."

That transfer frustration may centre around Victor Osimhen, who appears set to leave Naples, as the striker's exit continues to block Conte from adding to his squad.

"This is a question you should ask the club and not me," Conte said of Osimhen's future. "I see that Osimhen has trained separately. You should ask the club, absolutely not me.

"I said it straight away, I was a spectator on this matter. But beyond a single player, you definitely need to have a different attitude, with more personality, more desire."

Napoli's Serie A season began in calamitous fashion on Sunday as they were thrashed 3-0 by Verona, also losing star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to injury.

Antonio Conte, overseeing his first league game in charge of the 2023 Scudetto winners, was forced to withdraw Kvaratskhelia just before half-time after the Georgian collided with Pawel Dawidowicz.

Napoli's problems mounted after the break when Dailon Livramento got in front of their defence to slot home from close range and give the hosts the lead.

The nightmare continued for Napoli after 75 minutes as substitute Daniel Mosquera received a throughball and calmly slotted his finish past Alex Meret.

With Napoli throwing men forward late on, Verona added some gloss to the scoreline as Mosquera claimed his brace, tapping home a cutback from Darko Lazovic for his brace.

Data Debrief: Conte's perfect record ends

After a dismal 2023-24 season that saw Napoli, as defending champions, go through three head coaches and finish 10th in Serie A, hopes were high that Conte's arrival would herald an instant upturn.

However, the Partenopei were stunned in his first league game at the helm, as he started a season as a Serie A manager with a defeat for the very first time.

He had previously registered five wins and one draw on matchday one in the competition.

Napoli must have realistic expectations for the 2024-25 Serie A season during a period of reconstruction, so says Antonio Conte.

Conte took over in June, after Napoli went through three different coaches last season when, after winning the Scudetto under Luciano Spalletti in 2023, they followed that up by failing to qualify for European competition.

Former Italy boss Conte, who won four Serie A titles with Juventus and Inter, along with a Premier League title at Chelsea, wants patience from the club and the fans going into the new season.

"Our mantra is to give 200%, we have to go beyond our limits, all of us, because it is a critical moment for Napoli, the president spoke of reconstruction," Conte told reporters ahead of Napoli's opening game against Verona on Sunday.

"I have made my assessments and I agree with him perfectly; there is a need for a total reconstruction, from the ground up.

"A squad that puts 10-12 players on the market, means that there is a reconstruction underway and like any reconstruction we need patience and humility."

When Conte took charge at Juventus in 2011, they had finished seventh the previous season and he immediately led them to three consecutive league titles, but he does not expect such a quick turnaround at Napoli.

"I expected a better situation, positive surprises, which is why when I spoke at the beginning I said, even after such a negative year we must not throw everything away but let's understand if there are also positive things," Conte said.

"I expected positive surprises, but I had a hard time finding any. But you arrive and there are nine-10 exits.

"We are not saying that we are at year zero but at the year very close to zero. It doesn't scare me but it's better to be clear, when there is reality and clarity you know where to go and what problems to face."

Conte declined to speak about Victor Osimhen, who is expected to be left out of the squad for Verona, with the Nigerian forward likely to leave the club during this transfer window, and he warned it would take time to get Napoli back to the top.

"I don't know how long it will take for Napoli to become competitive again, whether it takes six months, 12, two years, I couldn't say."

Verona have parted ways with head coach Marco Baroni by mutual agreement, the Serie A club confirmed on Monday.

Baroni took charge of Verona in July 2023, signing a one-year contract with an option for a second year, but leaves the club after one season at the helm.

The Italian won nine of his 38 league games, finishing with a win rate of 25 per cent as the Gialloblu battled relegation for much of the campaign, but managed to steer them clear of the bottom three.  

It was the second time Baroni had been in management at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi having been appointed as Alberto Malesani's assistant for the 2002-03 season. 

Verona was the 16th club he has managed since starting his managerial career with Rodinella 24 years ago, and was thanked by his latest club for his contributions. 

"President Maurizio Setti, on behalf of the whole club, thanks Mr Baroni for the work he has done this season and wishes him the best of satisfaction for the continuation of his sporting career," the club statement said.

According to Italian media reports, the 60-year-old is expected to become the Lazio manager to replace Igor Tudor, who recently resigned after less than three months in charge.

Hellas Verona have parted ways with head coach Marco Baroni by mutual agreement, the Serie A club confirmed on Monday.

Baroni took charge of Verona in July 2023, signing a one-year contract with an option for a second year, but leaves the club after one season at the helm.

The Italian won nine of his 38 league games, finishing with a win percentage of 25% as the Gialloblu battled relegation for much of the campaign, but managed to steer them clear of the bottom three.  

It was the second time Baroni had been in management at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi having been appointed as Alberto Malesani's assistant for the 2002-03 season. 

Verona was the 16th club he has managed since starting his managerial career with Rodinella 24 years ago, and was thanked by his latest club for his contributions. 

"President Maurizio Setti, on behalf of the whole club, thanks Mr Baroni for the work he has done this season and wishes him the best of satisfaction for the continuation of his sporting career," the club statement said.

According to Italian media reports, the 60-year-old is expected to become the Lazio manager to replace Igor Tudor, who recently resigned after less than three months in charge.

Champions Inter end their Serie A season with a 2-2 draw against Verona thanks to a Marko Arnautovic double.

The Austrian opened the scoring after 10 minutes with a neat finish, but Inter were soon pegged back as Tijjani Noslin equalised six minutes later.

The Dutchman then set up Tomas Suslov for their second to turn the game on its head, but another smart finish from Arnautovic on the stroke of half-time ensured they would salvage a point.

Simone Perilli proved the hero for Verona in the end, pulling off a string of fine saves to keep his side level.

Data Debrief: Landmark for Inzaghi

Simone Inzaghi has now earned 250 points as a coach in Serie A with Inter, an achievement only Roberto Mancini has reached so far with the Nerazzurri in the three-points-per-win era (436). This draw takes him up to the landmark after 77 wins and 19 draws (18 losses).

After winning the Scudetto with five games to go, Inzaghi has led Inter to 94 points in Serie A, with only three teams ever earning more points in a single campaign in the competition in the three-points-per-win era: Inter in 2006-07 (97) and Juventus in 2013-14 (102) and 2017-18 (95).

Hellas Verona boss Marco Baroni insists their showdown against Serie A leaders Inter Milan is not already a foregone conclusion as his side look to keep themselves clear of the relegation zone.

The Gialloblu have lost three straight games against Inter, all without scoring a goal – and were thrashed 6-0 at home the last time the sides met in May.

Baroni, though, is looking for a positive response after his side were beaten 1-0 at home by Salernitana in their last game of 2023.

“We are going to play a match on Saturday which may be impossible on paper, but these are the matches that give us the measure of what we are,” Baroni said.

“It’s an opportunity. We know who we are playing against, but we go looking for a performance, this is what we need. I always turn difficulties into opportunities.

“We must not be distracted by something we cannot control – work can help us obtain the our objectives, the rest is of no use to us.”

Inter saw their gap over rivals Juventus closed down to two points after being held to a 1-1 draw at Genoa in their final match of 2023, but they remain unbeaten in 12 league games.

Striker Lautaro Martinez, Serie A’s top scorer with 15 goals, and defender Federico Dimarco could be available again from muscle injuries after both trained with the squad ahead of Saturday’s game.

New signing Tajon Buchanan, though, is not expected to feature.

The 24-year-old wing-back only officially completed his move from Club Brugge on Friday afternoon to become the first Canadian to play in Serie A.

“I think that it was the right decision for me at this point in my career,” Buchanan said to Inter TV.

“I have followed Inter for a while and I see myself playing in this team. I am really excited for what is to come.”

Buchanan added: “I can play in a number of roles, but my aim is just to learn as much as possible, make myself available for the team and adapt to a new style of play.

“I want to take it day by day, working hard. I want to settle in as quickly as possible and learn as much as possible from the coach, the staff and the guys that have been here for a while.”

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored twice as Napoli relaunched their Serie A title defence with a 3-1 victory at struggling Hellas Verona.

Recent underwhelming form saw Rudi Garcia’s men suffer a home defeat by Fiorentina last time out but they were always likely to get more from a trip to a Verona side who were winless in six matches heading into Saturday afternoon’s clash.

Matteo Politano made the first-half breakthrough before Kvaratskhelia scored either side of the break to render Darko Lazovic’s response largely redundant as Napoli consolidated themselves in fifth, not far behind the leading pack.

Napoli were first to threaten as Giacomo Raspadori forced Lorenzo Montipo to punch clear from a venomous free-kick in the seventh minute.

Raspadori soon tried again, this time connecting with a Mario Rui touch to test Montipo from distance. The Verona goalkeeper parried for a corner but he was not so successful in the 27th minute when Napoli opened the scoring.

Mario Rui, Piotr Zielinski and Raspadori tied Verona up in knots with a series of short passes before the latter crossed to an unmarked Politano for a volleyed left-footed finish at the far post.

There was almost a quickfire second when Jens Cajuste, put through by the slick Raspadori, spanked it wide from a one-on-one with Montipo.

Kvaratskhelia gave Napoli a two-goal lead before half-time, however. A rapid counter-attack down the right side gave Politano plenty of time to pick out the Georgian on the other flank for a low drive inside the near post.

Verona tried to slash the deficit as soon as play resumed, with Federico Bonazzoli latching onto Milan Djuric’s pass and fizzing it towards Alex Meret in the Napoli goal.

Instead Kvaratskhelia fired the Partenopei well clear when, in the 55th minute, he collected another Politano assist and coolly beat Montipo.

Lazovic promptly bit back for wounded Verona, though, when the visitors failed to deal with Davide Faraoni’s cross on the hour mark and the Serbian scorched one in.

With a potential comeback on the cards the game opened up and Djuric and Politano enjoyed opportunities at either end before Meret pulled off a desperate stop to deny Bonazzoli before needing to keep Lazovic at bay not long after.

Substitute Alessio Zerbin looked to rubber-stamp the Napoli win as time ticked away but Montipo prevented further damage by blocking the daisy cutter with his legs, limiting the winning margin to two goals.

Spezia and Hellas Verona face a relegation play-off following a dramatic final day of the Serie A season.

The two sides started the day level on points and could not be separated after both suffered defeats away from home.

Dimitris Nikolaou gave Spezia the lead against Europa League runners-up Roma after just six minutes, but Nicola Zalewski equalised just before half-time and Paulo Dybala held his nerve to convert a 90th-minute penalty.

The spot-kick was awarded after Kelvin Amian fouled Stephan El Shaarawy, with Amian sent off for a second bookable offence.

Verona were on course for the point against AC Milan which would have been enough for safety when Davide Faraoni’s 72nd-minute goal cancelled out Olivier Giroud’s penalty, but Rafael Leao scored twice in the closing minutes to give the Rossoneri a 3-1 win.

After the match, Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic announced his retirement from football at the age of 41.

The first relegation play-off since Bologna faced Parma in 2005 will take place at a neutral venue next weekend.

At the other end of the table, Atalanta thrashed 10-man Monza 5-2 to secure a Europa League place along with Roma, with Juventus set for the Europa Conference League despite a 1-0 win at Udinese.

Champions Napoli ended the season with a 2-0 win over bottom side Sampdoria, Victor Osimhen scoring his 26th goal of the season from the penalty spot after being fouled in the area and Giovanni Simeone rifling home from distance five minutes from time.

A potentially dramatic battle in LaLiga failed to produce any real fireworks as Real Valladolid were relegated following a 0-0 home draw with Getafe.

Six teams were in danger of joining the already-relegated Espanyol and Elche in going down, but Valladolid started and ended the day in the bottom three following a disappointing stalemate.

Celta Vigo made certain of survival with a 2-1 win over champions Barcelona thanks to a brace from Gabri Veiga.

Barcelona ended the season 10 points clear of runners-up Real Madrid after Karim Benzema marked his final appearance for the capital club with the equaliser in a 1-1 draw with Athletic Bilbao.

Benzema scored a 72nd-minute penalty to cancel out Oihan Sancet’s opener early in the second half.

In Belgium, Toby Alderweireld fired in a stunning last-gasp goal to help Royal Antwerp win their first league title since 1957.

The former Tottenham defender – who joined his hometown club last summer – equalised in the fourth minute of stoppage time from outside the box as Antwerp rescued a 2-2 draw against title rivals Genk.

The goal meant Antwerp edged out both Genk and Union Saint-Gilloise by just one point to win the Belgian league title for only the fifth time in their history.

Milan signed off the Serie A season with a 3-1 victory as Rafael Leao's double condemned Hellas Verona to a relegation play-off with Spezia.

The Rossoneri wrapped up a frustrating campaign on a winning note at San Siro, with a late Leao brace enough to seal three points.

Milan had already secured Champions League football for another term but struggled at times against the visitors, who cancelled out Olivier Giroud's first-half penalty through Marco Faraoni's 72nd-minute strike.

Yet Leao struck in the 85th minute and again seven minutes later, leaving Verona to face a relegation decider with Spezia, who succumbed to a late 2-1 loss at Roma.