Soccer Football - Serie A - Inter Milan v Monza - San Siro, Milan, Italy - August 19, 2023 Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Claudia Greco
MILAN (Reuters) - Argentine striker Lautaro Martinez struck twice as Inter Milan claimed a 2-0 win over visiting Monza in their Serie A opener on Saturday.
Inter went ahead early after Denzel Dumfries picked out Martinez with a low cross in the seventh minute, but Simone Inzaghi's side were culpable of taking their foot off the gas as Monza enjoyed a sizeable chunk of possession in the first half.
Monza's best opportunity came in the 48th minute when Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer parried a cross into the path of Giorgos Kyriakopoulos, but the Greek defender was denied by Hakan Calhanoglu's block.
As Monza continued to commit bodies forward in their push for an equaliser, they were punished once again by Martinez, who slid in at the far post to turn in substitute Marko Arnautovic's cross and seal the victory at the San Siro.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
