January 29, (THEWILL) — Inter Milan defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Signal Iduna Park but missed out on automatic qualification for the UEFA Champions League’s last 16. Goals from Federico Dimarco and Andy Diouf in the second half earned the Nerazzurri three points, yet they finished 10th in the standings and must now contest the play-offs.
The opening 45 minutes produced little of note. Dortmund striker Serhou Guirassy squandered a clear opportunity when he shot directly at Yann Sommer after the ball dropped for him inside the penalty area. Ange-Yoan Bonny then missed a free header just before half-time, leaving both sides goalless at the interval.
Dimarco broke the deadlock with 10 minutes remaining, curling a superb free-kick into the right side of the net. The strike temporarily lifted Inter into the top eight positions, but other results meant they soon dropped back out of automatic qualification spots.
Diouf added a second goal late on after Dortmund were caught out from a throw-in deep in their own half. The midfielder’s weak shot deflected off Jobe Bellingham and trickled into the bottom-right corner to seal the victory for the Italian side.
Inter will now meet either Bodo/Glimt or Benfica in the play-off round, with Benfica advancing thanks to a dramatic 4-2 win over Real Madrid that included a 98th-minute goal from goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin. Dortmund finished 17th and will face either Atalanta or Bayer Leverkusen in their play-off tie
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
