A tentative first half from both teams was lit up by an exceptional moment of class from Hakan Calhanoglu.
Despite being known for the quality of his free-kicks, few would have expected the Turkish midfielder to blast his 30-yard strike to the keeper’s side of the goal, but such was the accuracy of the hit that it somehow managed to curl beyond a flummoxed Omri Glazer in the Red Star net. Curiously, it was Inter’s first Champions League goal from a direct free kick in 14 years.
That early strike failed to open the floodgates for the fancied Italians though, as the visitors maintained the one-goal deficit thanks to wasteful finishing and refereeing decisions.
Both Marko Arnautovic and Denzel Dumfries had the ball in the back of the net but were found to be in offside positions, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan blasted over from no more than 10 yards out just before half-time.
Just nine days after suffering a derby defeat, it would be an ex-AC Milan player to gift Inter a second goal and seal the visitors’ unfortunate fate.
Rade Krunic was dispossessed on the edge of his own box by a rabid Mehdi Taremi, and the Iranian forward laid the ball across to an unmarked Arnautović to slot the ball home and seal the victory.
The Red-Whites were now well and truly defeated and were beaten black and blue by the Nerazzurri for the remaining 30 minutes.
Arnautovic and Carlos Augusto should have added a third, before another act of charity allowed substitute Lautaro Martinez grab a goal just five minutes after coming on.
Taremi was gifted possession by a wayward pass, and he set up the Argentinian with a simple chance.
There was still time left for the Iranian to seal an impressive individual performance as well, and he coolly dispatched a penalty to make it 4-0 and round out a fantastic night at the San Siro.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Mehdi Taremi (Inter Milan)
