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Zlatan Ibrahimovic appeared to end his bitter feud with Romelu Lukaku in a show of respect in the Milan derby.
There has long been bad blood between the two forwards and spirits overflowed in the Coppa Italia quarterfinals last month.
AC Milan veteran Ibrahimovic and Inter ace Lukaku clashed and were heard exchanging personal insults just before half-time.
As such, Sunday’s clash between the top two Serie A teams has been touted as a tantalizing rematch between the two warring frontmen.
In the event, Inter took the win to open a four-point lead over their local rivals.
(Image: REUTERS)
Lukaku was the Nerazzurri’s outstanding performance, helping Lautaro Martinez’s opener in the fifth minute and scoring his team’s third in the second half.
The Belgian celebrated emphatically after shooting past Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 65th minute and appeared to repeatedly shout “Dio” – which means “God” – at Ibrahimovic.
It was probably a reference to the Swede’s remarks after Milan’s 2-1 derby victory last October, when he said: “Milan never had a king. They have a God.”
(Image: Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)
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Ibrahimovic’s comments were, in turn, a response to Lukaku, who earlier in 2020 said “There is a new king in town” after Inter beat the Rossoneri 4-2 in February.
But after Lukaku shouted “Dio” at him during Sunday’s clash between the two big rivals, Ibrahimovic did not react with anger.
Instead, reruns have shown the 39-year-old applauding his former Manchester United team-mate as the boisterous Inter celebrations continued.
(Image: Getty Images)
Will Inter launch their triumph in the Milan derby to win Serie A? Have your say in the comments.
Lukaku’s strike means he’s the first player in 71 years to score in four straight Milan derbies. It also puts him away from Cristiano Ronaldo in the Serie A top scorer table with 17 goals this season.
Inter are looking for their first Scudetto since 2010 and manager Antonio Conte said: “Congratulations to my players, they have prepared well for this game.
“Is this the best win of my coaching career? I hope the best is yet to come.”
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