He set up Lautaro Martinez’s first two goals and also had a hand in Inter’s third, fourth and fifth of the evening. It was a complete performance from Nicolò Barella, who was in inspired form in the Nerazzurri’s victory over Salernitana and, according to Opta data, is the deserved MVP from matchday 28 in Serie A TIM. The Italy midfielder really was back to his best on Friday evening, and, thanks to his two pinpoint passes, now has nine assists to his name this Serie A season – a record for him in a single campaign (he’s now achieved more than he did last season – seven). Only one other Azzurri player,  Domenico Berardi (eleven), has done better in this regard.

Over the course of the 90 minutes at the Meazza, Barella didn’t just contribute in attack, he showed himself to be in excellent condition, helping out all over the park. Out of all the players, he had the best stats in terms of touches (95), passes (72), passes in the opposition half (44), the number of duels he was involved in (15), chances created (four), crosses from open play (four) and tackles (four), while he was also the Inter man who regained possession on the most occasions (eight). Quality, substance and energy.

Match stats against Salernitana

Minutes played: 90

Assists: 2

Chances created: 4

Touches: 95

Total duels: 15