Mauro Icardi scored on his first Inter Milan appearance in almost two months to help his side extend their lead in third place with a 4-0 Serie A win away to 10-man Genoa on Wednesday.
The Argentine had not featured since being stripped of the captaincy on February 13 amid protracted contract renewal talks.
Icardi initially said he could not play because of a knee problem, before returning to training last week after negotiations between his lawyer and the club.
Roberto Gagliardini opened the scoring in the first half before Icardi won and converted a penalty after Genoa defender Cristian Romero was sent off.
The former Inter captain then teed up Ivan Perisic for their third in the second half and Gagliardini scored his second of the night to complete the rout but coach Luciano Spalletti insisted Icardi could have offered more.
“He played a good match, but he could have done even better,” Spalletti said. “The team reacted in the correct manner, putting Inter above everything. He has paid the price that he needed to pay. Now we can be stronger with him.” The result leaves Inter four points clear of fourth-placed rivals AC Milan, while Genoa remain 12th on 33 points.
“(Genoa) played a great game 15 days ago when they beat Juventus. With (coach Cesare) Prandelli Genoa have won important points and had some great performances,” Spalletti added.
“The game which we played is a consequence of having clear ideas about what a team should do. When you win it is because everyone plays well. We are professionals and are paid to do this, and have to go to work in a serious way because that is what the people who care about Inter want.”
Inter went in front after 15 minutes when Gagliardini arrived in the box to get on the end of Kwadwo Asamoah’s cross and guide a finish beyond goalkeeper Ionut Radu.
Meanwhile, Empoli stunned Napoli with a 2-1 home win to boost their survival hopes and leave the visitors 18 points adrift of Serie A leaders Juventus.
Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s second-half winner lifted the Tuscan side out of the relegation zone at Bologna’s expense ahead of the remaining Week 30 fixtures.
Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski had equalised for the visitors a minute before halftime after Empoli striker Diego Farias had opened the scoring.
Napoli remain second in the standings on 63 points with a 10-point advantage over third-placed Inter Milan, but Juventus, who beat Cagliari 2-0 on Tuesday, have a huge lead over their nearest rival.
