Simone Inzaghi believes Inter demonstrated "a great desire to win" after Edin Dzeko's double secured a 2-1 victory over Sassuolo.

Inter, who beat Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday, got back to winning ways in Serie A after suffering back-to-back defeats, while they also ended a run of three successive away losses.

At the age of 36 years and 205 days, Dzeko passed the 100-goal mark in the Italian top flight, becoming the third-oldest player to do so after Goran Pandev (37y 268d) and Sergio Pellissier (37y 243d).

Inzaghi hailed the character shown by his players, telling DAZN in his post-match interview: "We saw an Inter that had a lot of desire to win and this overcame physical and mental fatigue.

"The team had a great desire to win, like Tuesday [against Barcelona in the Champions League]. Towards the end, despite the tiredness, we grew technically and this allowed us to win the game."

Inzaghi also highlighted the impact of club captain Samir Handanovic who, despite dropping to the bench to facilitate a Serie A debut for Andre Onana, gave a rousing pre-match speech in the dressing room at the MAPEI Stadium.

"Samir is an added value on the pitch and also off," Inzaghi said. "Only in this way can we move forward. But not only Samir, [everyone] made an important contribution.

"[Andre] played as I expected. A goalkeeper of very important quality and, in two months, he has shown that he can play the place with a great champion like Handanovic."

The big games keep coming for the Nerazzurri, who travel to Camp Nou in midweek for their return fixture against Barca.

"Now, we will have Barcelona, it is a delicate and important moment, with a few rotations especially in attack and in midfield," Inzaghi added. "We have to recover our energy."

Simone Inzaghi believes Inter demonstrated "a great desire to win" after Edin Dzeko's double secured a 2-1 victory over Sassuolo.

Inter, who beat Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday, got back to winning ways in Serie A after suffering back-to-back defeats, while they also ended a run of three successive away losses.

At the age of 36 years and 205 days, Dzeko passed the 100-goal mark in the Italian top flight, becoming the third-oldest player to do so after Goran Pandev (37y 268d) and Sergio Pellissier (37y 243d).

Inzaghi hailed the character shown by his players, telling DAZN in his post-match interview: "We saw an Inter that had a lot of desire to win and this overcame physical and mental fatigue.

"The team had a great desire to win, like Tuesday [against Barcelona in the Champions League]. Towards the end, despite the tiredness, we grew technically and this allowed us to win the game."

Inzaghi also highlighted the impact of club captain Samir Handanovic who, despite dropping to the bench to facilitate a Serie A debut for Andre Onana, gave a rousing pre-match speech in the dressing room at the MAPEI Stadium.

"Samir is an added value on the pitch and also off," Inzaghi said. "Only in this way can we move forward. But not only Samir, [everyone] made an important contribution.

"[Andre] played as I expected. A goalkeeper of very important quality and, in two months, he has shown that he can play the place with a great champion like Handanovic."

The big games keep coming for the Nerazzurri, who travel to Camp Nou in midweek for their return fixture against Barca.

"Now, we will have Barcelona, it is a delicate and important moment, with a few rotations especially in attack and in midfield," Inzaghi added. "We have to recover our energy."

Edin Dzeko took his tally of Serie A goals past 100 as Inter edged out Sassuolo 2-1 at the MAPEI Stadium on Saturday.

The 36-year-old became the third-oldest player to reach a century in the Italian top light when he broke the deadlock in the 44th minute with only his second strike of the season.

Davide Frattesi's 60th-minute volley brought the hosts level, but Dzeko grabbed the winner and his 101st in the division when he headed home Henrikh Mkhitaryan's cross 15 minutes from time.

Simone Inzaghi's side are back to winning ways in Serie A following back-to-back defeats, while also ending a three-game losing streak on the road.

Sassuolo went close to opening the scoring in the fourth minute when Frattesi was denied from tight angle while Armand Lauriente's follow-up was blocked by face of Nicolo Barella, who was subsequently cleared to continue.

A scorer in two of the last three meetings between the sides, Lautaro Martinez squandered a brilliant opportunity to break the deadlock 10 minutes later. Denzel Dumfries capitalised on sloppy possession by the hosts before crossing for the sliding Argentina international, who somehow steered wide from six yards out.

Inter broke through just before half-time as Dumfries flicked on a corner and Dzeko volleyed home from close range.

The hosts equalised on the hour mark when Rogerio's deep cross was met on the volley by Frattesi in the six-yard box.

However, the visitors regained the lead with a quarter of an hour remaining. Moments after Andrea Consigli had produced stunning reflexes to deny Martinez, the goalkeeper was powerless as Dzeko headed home Mkhitaryan's delivery to snatch all three points.

Italy boss Roberto Mancini has confirmed his side will be without Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti for their Nations League matches with England and Hungary.

Verratti was substituted off during the second half of PSG's Ligue 1 victory at Lyon on Sunday with an apparent calf problem.

PSG boss Christophe Galtier said after the game that the 29-year-old would delay linking up with the Italy squad to instead undergo a scan in Paris on Monday.

And Mancini is now preparing for Friday's visit of England and the trip to Hungary three days later without Verratti, with Sassuolo's Davide Frattesi in line for a call-up, while there was better news regarding Milan's Sandro Tonali and Napoli's Matteo Politano.

"Verratti is not available. He's picked up a knock," Mancini said at a press conference on Monday. "I'll probably call Frattesi to replace him.

"As for the other players, Tonali's problem is not a big one and Politano feels well."

Italy drew with Germany and England either side of beating Hungary in their first three Group A3 matches, before going down 5-2 in the reverse fixture with Germany last time out.

The reigning European champions are third, two points off leaders Germany and three points ahead of England in the relegation spot.

"Anything can happen in this group," Mancini said. "It wasn't pleasant losing 5-2 in the last game, but even then I saw some positive signs.

"Sometimes you need these kind of games to help you improve. It came at the end of the last season when we played a lot of matches.

"But the younger players have gained experience and we've done well overall with the five points collected."

Arsenal were heavily linked with Manuel Locatelli more than 12 months ago and look set to revive their interest.

Locatelli won plenty of admirers with his performances for Italy at Euro 2020.

Among them was Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, but at the time Locatelli preferred to join Juventus.

TOP STORY – GUNNERS TO REVIVE LOCATELLI INTEREST

Premier League leaders Arsenal will renew their pursuit of Italy international Manuel Locatelli in the near future, claims Calciomercato.

The Gunners have previously been linked with the 24-year-old Juventus midfielder, who is on loan from Sassuolo.

Locatelli was signed by the Bianconeri in August 2021 on a two-year loan, with Juventus holding the obligation to purchase him for €25 million payable over three years plus €12.5m in potential add-ons.

ROUND-UP

– Real Madrid will not stand in the way of Mariano Diaz should he decide to exit the club across town to join Atletico Madrid, according to El Nacional. It has previously been reported Atletico are targeting the 29-year-old striker.

– Madrid will not pursue a deal for Paris Saint-Germain attacker Kylian Mbappe if he has no interest in signing, according to Marca. Mbappe was close to joining the Spanish giants in the off-season as a free agent after a long chase, before signing a lucrative extension with PSG.

– The Sun claims that Leicester City may be forced to stick with manager Brendan Rodgers as it will be too expensive for the club to sack him amid their awful start to the new Premier League season. According to the report, the Foxes would need to pay Rodgers more than £10 million to sack him, with three years left on his deal.

– Chelsea's overhaul continues with the club on the cusp of appointing Christoph Freund as their new sporting director, claims The Guardian. Freund is with Austrian champions Salzburg. The Blues recently replaced Thomas Tuchel with Graham Potter as head coach.

Chelsea were one of the big spenders during the transfer window with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang headlining their deadline-day business.

The Blues also signed Wesley Fofana and Denis Zakaria over the past week after losing several key players.

Chelsea have started the new Premier League season with mixed results, with Saturday's 2-1 win over West Ham improving their record to 10 points from six games.

TOP STORY – CHELSEA LODGED AUDACIOUS DEADLINE DAY LAVIA BID

Chelsea tried to sign Belgium youth international Romeo Lavia from Southampton on deadline day less than two months after he joined the Saints from Manchester City, reports the Daily Echo.

The Blues were one of the big spenders late in the transfer window, and submitted a £50million proposal for the 18-year-old midfielder.

Southampton rejected the proposal having signed Lavia from City for £12m in July. City retain a buy-back clause for Lavia who has played five times for Southampton this season.

ROUND-UP

– El Nacional reports Arsenal attempted to sign Barcelona's Ferran Torres with an audacious €30m bid before the close of the transfer window on Thursday. The Spaniard joined Barca from Manchester City in January but has not been a regular starter and the Gunners tried to convince the Catalans to let him go.

– Tottenham tried to sign Ukrainian midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi from Atalanta but the Serie A club refused to sell him, claims Fabrizio Romano. Spurs may re-open the situation in January.

– Besiktas are in discussions with Sassuolo's Turkey international centre-back Kaan Ayhan about a move to Turkey according to Ajansspor. The Turkish transfer window is open until September 8.

– L'Equipe claims that former Everton and Lille full-back Djibril Sidibe will join Greek club AEK Athens , having left Monaco when his contract expired at the end of last season.

Stefano Pioli criticised Milan after a poor performance resulted in a goalless draw with Sassuolo, but the head coach expects better in Saturday's derby against Inter.

The Rossoneri have two wins and two draws in the first four games of their Serie A title defence, though the display on Tuesday away at Sassuolo left much to be desired.

Pioli's side were far from their best, perhaps fortunate to share the spoils after Mike Maignan was required to save a Domenico Berardi penalty in the first half.

Having missed a chance to collect three points, Milan opened the door for Inter, Roma and Napoli to leapfrog them in the early stages of the 2022-23 Scudetto race.

Fierce rivals Inter are next up for Pioli and the Milan coach acknowledged there must be an improvement on this latest showing.

"It was not a Milan of quality, technique or decision-making," Pioli said. "We played football that was too frenetic, we weren't able to read the game and this made it complicated.

"It made it dirty, ruffled and with little rhythm. We struggled to find spaces. We started well, I liked the beginning very much, then we lost calmness and we were in too much of a hurry in the search for the opponent's goal.

"I have already seen the players, they have spoken more. We lacked quality and calmness, they are aware and it is important. I think that the next matches will be different."

Asked whether preparations were different due to the looming clash with Inter, Pioli added: "We recovered after [Saturday's 2-0 win over] Bologna and tried to prepare for the game well from a tactical point of view.

"Saying something to the team for the derby will be easy. It is a derby, the rivalry is high and we know how much the result can weigh and we will prepare for it in the best possible way."

Fast-paced play and a never-say-die attitude characterised Milan's route to Scudetto glory last season – a facet that was largely missing against Sassuolo.

Milan's championship-winning season has changed the way Pioli's side are judged, and the coach urged his players to rise to that challenge.

Pioli said: "Our expectations have increased and we have to hold them up, but that's right, it's a privilege."

Milan will go into the derby with Inter having suffered another early blip in the Scudetto race after being held to a 0-0 draw at Sassuolo.

The defending Serie A champions got back to winning ways at the weekend with a 2-0 victory over Bologna, having previously been held by Atalanta.

But they were not at their best on Tuesday in a game they would have lost had Mike Maignan not saved a first-half penalty from Domenico Berardi – the Italy international who later came off with a seemingly concerning injury.

It means Milan are still unbeaten with two wins and two draws from four games, but the stalemate offered Inter – along with the likes of Roma, Napoli and Lazio – the chance to leapfrog the Rossoneri in this round of midweek fixtures.

Milan unsurprisingly made the early running and went close in the 16th minute when Brahim Diaz dragged wide from the edge of the area.

Yet Sassuolo were gifted a chance to take the lead when Giorgos Kyriakopoulos was tripped just inside the box by Alexis Saelemaekers in the 21st minute.

However, Berardi's penalty lacked direction and Maignan was equal to it, his save providing a huge let-off for the champions.

Berardi's day got worse when he had to be helped off seven minutes into the second half and was clearly emotional in the dugout after coming off. 

Kristian Thorstvedt drew a comfortable save from Maignan as the hosts initially enjoyed the better of the second period.

Chances at either end were few and far between thereafter, though, Milan hitting the target just twice in an underwhelming display that was capped by Alessandro Florenzi limping down the tunnel in injury time.

Napoli have completed the signing of Giacomo Raspadori from Sassuolo, with the 22-year-old initially arriving on a season-long loan ahead of a permanent transfer next year.

Raspadori, who was also targeted by Juventus after scoring 10 Serie A goals last season, follows the likes of Giovanni Simeone, Tanguy Ndombele and Kim Min-jae in sealing a move to Naples during a busy transfer window in southern Italy.

Luciano Spalletti's team threatened to challenge for a first Scudetto since the Diego Maradona era before finishing third last season, but they have subsequently been in need of attacking reinforcements following a spate of high-profile departures.

Dries Mertens and Lorenzo Insigne, the two highest goalscorers in Napoli's history, both departed on free transfers after netting 11 apiece in the league last term.

During a breakthrough 2021-22 campaign with Alessio Dionisi's Sassuolo, Raspadori became the first Italian player born in the 21st century to hit 10 goals in a Serie A season.

Reports suggest Napoli will pay Sassuolo an initial €5million loan fee before parting with €30m to make the move permanent next year.

Napoli began their Serie A campaign with a 5-2 win at Hellas Verona last week and will host newly promoted Monza in their second outing of the season on Sunday. 

Manchester United are under pressure to make some signings amid their poor start to the new Premier League season.

The Red Devils have lost their opening two league games under new boss Erik ten Hag.

United have only brought in a few players this off-season and are in need for reinforcements.

TOP STORY – MAN UTD DECLINED BY ATLETICO IN JOAO FELIX BID

Atletico Madrid have rejected a bumper £110million (€130m) bid from Manchester United for Portuguese forward Joao Felix, claims AS.

Atleti have reportedly inserted a staggering €350m (£295m) release clause in the 22-year-old's contract.

United's reported bid is a club record, £25m more than the fee they paid Juventus for Paul Pogba in 2016.

ROUND-UP

– United want to sign five more players this transfer window reports the Telegraph and have a shortlist of potential signings with Borussia Dortmund's Thomas Meunier, Chelsea winger Christian Pulisic, Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro, Lazio's Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Barcelona's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Everton goalkeeper Asmir Begovic is also on their radar to provide a back-up to David de Gea.

– Paris Saint-Germain have not given up in a pursuit of Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva and are plotting a €71m (£59m) move for him, according to The Times.

– Napoli are closing in on a deal to sign Sassuolo's 22-year-old forward Giacomo Raspadori reports Calciomercato. It is claimed he will join Napoli by the end of the week.

– Nottingham Forest's busy window continues with the newly promoted Premier League club chasing Madrid right-back Alvaro Odriozola, according to AS.

– Brighton and Hove Albion want a permanent move for Chelsea midfielder Billy Gilmour, reports the Daily Mail. 

Juventus and Milan target Domenico Berardi has signed a new contract with Sassuolo that will keep him at the club until 2027.

Berardi impressed again for Sassuolo in the 2021-22 season, scoring 15 times in Serie A – the third consecutive campaign the forward has posted double figures in the league.

He also recorded the most assists in the Italian top flight (14) and was the only Serie A forward to manage double figures for both goals and assists.

The 28-year-old has been at Sassuolo his entire career, but there had been suggestions recently that he could be tempted by a new challenge.

He was linked to Juventus, who co-owned him between 2013 and 2015, while Liverpool and Milan were also among those reportedly interested in the Italy international.

However, it was announced on Wednesday that he had pledged his future to the club for a further five years.

Berardi was in the headlines for the wrong reasons last week after he was involved in a heated spat with a Modena fan.

Sassuolo were eliminated from the Coppa Italia by their Serie B hosts at Stadio Alberto Braglia, with their loss followed by Berardi apparently chasing an opposing supporter outside the ground.

The footage went viral, but Berardi took to social media to offer an explanation, suggesting his family had been targeted off the pitch to spark his ire.

Dusan Vlahovic struck a brace to help Juventus to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Sassuolo in the opening match of their Serie A campaign on Monday.

The Serbian forward struck five minutes either side of the interval to put the Bianconeri in control after Angel Di Maria marked his Juve debut with a maiden goal at the Allianz Stadium.

Massimiliano Allegri's side were not at their best in possession but made their chances count, with their attacking contingent laying down a marker to their rivals.

A shaky start from the hosts provided Sassuolo with encouragement and called Mattia Perin, in for the injured Wojciech Szczesny, into action to deny Gregoire Defrel on two occasions.

Juventus soon found some rhythm and made the breakthrough when Di Maria met Alex Sandro's cross by bouncing a volleyed effort over the head of Andrea Consigli.

Five minutes before the break, Vlahovic bullied Gian Marco Ferrari to win the hosts a penalty and stepped-up to confidently smash home from the spot to open his account for the season.

Sassuolo were the architects of their own downfall following the restart, Kaan Ayhan giving the ball away to Di Maria who fed in Vlahovic to double his tally and continue in the vein that saw him star last term.

Juventus took their foot off the gas in the remainder of the half to ease out a win, with Filip Kostic introduced for the final half hour in a comfortable debut environment.

Massimiliano Allegri says it is "useless" to discuss the transfer market as Juventus prepare to start the Serie A season against Sassuolo on Monday.

Paul Pogba, Angel Di Maria, Gleison Bremer and Filip Kostic have arrived at Juve during the transfer window, while Leandro Paredes and Memphis Depay have also been linked with moves to Turin.

Juve midfielder Adrien Rabiot is reportedly a target for Manchester United and on Sunday, Allegri suggested Arthur – who is sidelined with an ankle injury – could also move on.

But the Bianconeri coach is determined to avoid being distracted by transfer talk ahead of the clash with Sassuolo at the Allianz Stadium.

He said: "It is useless to talk about the transfer market, the club thinks about it. Players who left have been replaced, we must think about tomorrow's match.

"Sassuolo are coming from a bad defeat in the Coppa Italia [3-2 against Modena], but they have taken on important players like [Andrea] Pinamonti."

Meanwhile, Allegri believes suffering a 4-0 friendly thrashing against Atletico Madrid could be a blessing in disguise for Juve as they attempt to mount a title challenge.

He said: "We had three important friendlies, the last one ended badly and we had worked a lot during the week. The defeat did us good to make us raise our antennas, I have heard too many triumphalisms around.

"Juventus has the duty to try to win, the competitors have strengthened. There are four or five suitors [for the Scudetto] and we are among them. We have to work in silence, improve the team from all points of view.

"I think it is a job that we are doing every day, the club has been very good at replacing those who left. Let's think about the championship before the market closes, three at home and one away.

"We will have to suffer, like in all games. It has always been the strength of winning teams, respect the opponent. We need to do well when we have the ball and improve without the ball."

Allegri added he is yet to decide whether new winger Kostic will start on Monday following his move from Eintracht Frankfurt.

"Kostic is a player who crosses very well, he has arrived for two days and among other things he has been back and forth," Allegri said. "I still have to decide between him, [Weston] McKennie and [Juan] Cuadrado."

Rabiot and striker Moise Kean are not available for Juve's season-opener due to suspension, as the Bianconeri bid to improve on successive fourth-placed Serie A finishes.

Sassuolo winger Domenico Berardi has apologised for his actions following the club's Coppa Italia exit on Monday, after the Italy star was involved in a heated spat with a Modena fan.

The Serie A side were eliminated by their Serie B hosts at Stadio Alberto Braglia, with their loss followed by the 28-year-old apparently chasing an opposing supporter outside the ground.

The footage went viral, but Berardi has now taken to social media to offer an explanation, suggesting his family had been targeted off the pitch to spark his ire.

"I want to apologise for what happened outside the stadium after the game against Modena," he wrote on Instagram.

"We are professionals and, above all, we must be examples for youths and kids. Today I didn’t behave as such.

"That's because the things that I love the most, such as my wife and my son, were deliberately involved off the pitch, hurting me deeply. I also renew my apologies to the opposing fans."

Sassuolo managing director Giovanni Carnevali says Juventus are still competing with Napoli to try and sign Giacomo Raspadori and "anything can happen" before the transfer window closes.

Napoli are reported to have emerged as the favourites to sign the Italy forward, who has just under two years remaining on his contract.

Juve are said to have cooled their interest in the 22-year-old, who was part of the Azzurri squad that won Euro 2020 last year.

Sassuolo sold striker Gianluca Scamacca to West Ham last week for a fee £30.5million (€36m) plus £5m in add-ons and look set to lose another prized asset.

Carnevali said in an interview with Il Giornale: "For Giacomo there are the eyes of Napoli and Juventus.

"It is clear that the transfer market is still long and anything can still happen, but it is equally true that our idea is to end the negotiations within a few days to concentrate on the championship.

"The goal is to enhance youngsters, just like Gianluca Scamacca and his arrival in the Premier League is a fantastic recognition."

Raspadori scored 10 goals and provided five assists for Sassuolo in Serie A last season.