Roma held 2-2 by Inter despite leading by two: Lautaro answers Koné as both stay top

Within six minutes of kickoff, Inter’s defense had already cracked under a textbook pressing move. Manu Koné, Roma’s central midfielder, broke into the box unmarked, faced the goalkeeper and scored. It was not luck: Roma had cut off Inter’s buildup from the back. When the second goal arrived in the 37th minute, Roma looked in control. But football moves in its own rhythm, and Inter rewrote the script in the second half. The Serie A 2026/27 top-of-the-table clash took place immediately before the international break, with both sides sharing top spot. For Inter, this was another familiar slow start. Gasperini’s man-oriented pressing turned Roma’s half into a pressure maze. Inter could not find their usual passing rhythm, and the defense kept losing positional battles. That led to the opener after six minutes, with Koné doubling the lead from a move in which defender Akanji misread his back line. Koné’s second goal was not simply an individual error. A central midfielder arriving unmarked in the box means Inter’s defending from midfield had been torn apart. From the geometry of the pitch, Roma built a tight pressing triangle in midfield, strangling every short pass. Inter lost their way in the opening phase, and VAR added drama when Koné’s goal was first disallowed and then given after review. After the break, Chivu made a decisive adjustment. Instead of fighting in midfield, Inter went longer, pushing the ball quickly to Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martínez. Space opened behind Roma’s midfield line. Space is a weapon, time is ammunition. Inter used that space to pull one back in the 47th minute. The goal came at exactly the moment Roma lost control. Gasperini and Chivu both changed things more through necessity than choice. Roma dropped deeper, Inter pushed forward. Svilar made an outstanding save from Thuram, Lautaro hit the bar, and the pressure finally paid off in the 79th minute. Lautaro completed his brace to make it 2-2. The most worrying signal was Roma’s physical condition. Hermoso and Balerdi both went off injured; Malen asked to be substituted but Roma had no substitution opportunities left. When three players ask to leave the pitch in one match, it is a warning. Based on my experience watching these matches, Gasperini’s high-intensity style rarely lasts a full 90 minutes this early in the season, especially before an international break. Many will say Inter slipped up in the title race. But Inter just came back from two goals down against a direct rival. Roma are the side that let a two-goal lead slip. Both still sit top, but the real story is in the cracks: Inter’s slow starts and Roma’s endurance limit. A tactical drawing only lives if someone is brave enough to step into the box. Chivu stepped into a different box after the break; Gasperini still has not found a way to keep his machine running for the whole game. The Serie A 2026/27 race still has no master. Roma and Inter share the lead, Lazio is mentioned as a possible contender, while Juventus, Milan and Napoli are absent from this picture. The 2-2 draw confirmed both teams’ strengths and flaws. The question is not who is the favourite, but who fixes their weakness before the international break ends. That answer may shape the whole season.