Inter Milan suffered a painful 4-3 defeat to Club Brugge in a seven-goal UEFA Champions League thriller at San Siro, with Nicolò Tresoldi delivering a sensational hat-trick to help the Belgian side claim a memorable victory on Tuesday night.
Despite two goals from captain Lautaro Martínez and a late strike from Ange-Yoan Bonny, Inter could not recover from defensive mistakes that allowed Club Brugge to repeatedly punish them on the counterattack.
The defeat left Inter searching for their first points of the Champions League league phase after losing their opening two matches, while Club Brugge celebrated a significant victory against one of Italy’s leading sides.
Inter started with attacking intent, looking to put pressure on the visitors through Marcus Thuram, Andy Diouf and Martínez. However, Club Brugge gradually settled into the contest and showed they could threaten whenever space opened up behind the home defence.
Tresoldi came close to opening the scoring when a corner fell invitingly inside the Inter penalty area. The forward struck the ball firmly, but his effort crashed against the junction of the crossbar and post, giving the hosts an early warning.
The breakthrough arrived in the 30th minute after Inter midfielder Hakan Çalhanoğlu brought down Carlos Forbs inside the penalty area. The referee awarded Club Brugge a penalty, and Tresoldi stepped forward to convert, sending the ball into the net to put the visitors ahead.
Inter attempted to respond immediately, with Çalhanoğlu looking to make amends for conceding the spot-kick. The midfielder unleashed a powerful effort towards goal, but the ball struck the crossbar, denying the hosts an equaliser.
Lautaro Martínez also thought he had levelled the contest earlier in the first half after turning a free-kick delivery into the net. However, the effort was ruled out for offside, prolonging Inter’s frustration.
The Argentine eventually found his breakthrough just before half-time. In the 44th minute, Thuram drove forward down the left and combined with Federico Dimarco, whose backheel helped create the opening inside the penalty area. Martínez turned sharply to deceive his marker before finishing from close range to make it 1-1.
The equaliser gave Inter renewed belief heading into the break, but the home side’s defensive problems returned after the restart.
Club Brugge regained the lead in the 63rd minute through Tresoldi, who completed a swift attacking move initiated by Forbs. The winger used his pace to get away from the Inter defence before supplying the ball for Tresoldi, who finished past goalkeeper Josep Martínez to restore the Belgian side’s advantage.
Inter attempted to respond through Thuram and Martínez, but former Nerazzurri goalkeeper Yann Sommer remained alert when called upon. The Swiss international produced an important save to deny Martínez during a dangerous Inter attack, preventing the home captain from drawing his team level.
Club Brugge then increased their advantage in the 74th minute, with Tresoldi completing his hat-trick. Inter goalkeeper Josep Martínez could not hold a dangerous effort from Forbs, and Tresoldi reacted quickly to the rebound, sending the ball into the net to make it 3-1.
The goal appeared to put Club Brugge in control, but Inter refused to surrender. Their captain reduced the deficit in the 81st minute after Sommer parried a powerful long-range effort from substitute Petar Sučić. Martínez was perfectly positioned to collect the rebound and finish, bringing the score to 3-2 and giving the hosts fresh hope.
Inter pushed forward in search of an equaliser, leaving space for Club Brugge to exploit on the counterattack. The visitors took advantage in the 87th minute when Forbs intercepted a misplaced pass from Djed Spence and released Romeo Vermant down the right.
Vermant advanced towards goal before lifting a composed finish over the advancing goalkeeper to restore Club Brugge’s two-goal cushion at 4-2.
However, there was still time for another twist. In the 90th minute of normal time, Ange-Yoan Bonny pulled one back for Inter after receiving a pass from Aleksandar Stanković. Bonny moved into a dangerous position before cutting inside and curling a right-footed effort into the far top corner, making it 4-3 and setting up a tense finish.
Inter threw players forward during the closing moments, hoping to rescue a point, but Club Brugge held firm through the remaining stoppage time to secure the victory.
The encounter also produced several disciplinary incidents. Jorne Spileers, Çalhanoğlu and Manuel Akanji were booked during the first half, while Jan Virgili and Lee Han-beom received second-half yellow cards. Félix Lemaréchal was also booked late in stoppage time.
The woodwork proved particularly significant, with Tresoldi striking the crossbar-post junction before scoring his hat-trick and Çalhanoğlu hitting the crossbar while attempting to make up for conceding the penalty.
For Club Brugge, the victory was built on Tresoldi’s clinical finishing and the team’s ability to exploit defensive errors. For Inter, Martínez’s brace and Bonny’s late contribution were not enough to prevent another disappointing European night.
The 4-3 result delivered a memorable Champions League spectacle, but it also highlighted the defensive vulnerabilities Inter must address if they are to revive their campaign.
