As the final whistle blew in the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Wednesday night, some of the squad dropped to their knees. They had played well against Genoa, but once again had failed to break down an opposing team to lose 1-0. Their momentary lapse of concentration had seen them drop points again.
The initial thought was that the Nerazzurri had just given up the dream of playing in Europe's premier competition and on first glance this looks to be the case. Although it is out of their hands, there is still a glimmer of hope however slender, and it's predicated on Roberto Mancini's team winning all of their remaining games starting with Udinese this weekend.
The legendary Internazionale defender Giuseppe Bergomi summed up the plight of his former team perfectly, saying: "The Champions League seems gone, but Roma never give guarantees." He went on to argue that as long as it is mathematically possible for the team to qualify, they should fight to the end. The defender himself had character, ability, strength and determination and it will be a measure of this side between now and the end of the campaign to see if they have the same attributes.
After the game against Genoa, the news came through that Roma had been 2-1 down with 10 minutes to go, but had battled back to win on the back of Francesco Totti. The AS Roma legend entered the match in the 86th minuted and after only 22 seconds he had scored to level the game before sending Rome into a euphoric hysteria by then grabbing the winner late on. This leaves the Giallorossi seven points ahead of Inter with only four games (12 points) to play. But as "Beppe" Bergomi said, this is Roma.
The team from the Eternal city had been on fire under Luciano Spalletti and since his return they rocketed up the table. In recent weeks however, whether due to disputes between the coach and Totti, or because the players are burning out somewhat, they have made it difficult for themselves. A 1-1 draw against Bologna was followed up by 'Il Capitano' grabbing a late equaliser in Bergamo, before the aforementioned match was grabbed from the jaws of death in midweek. They have not been playing well and crucially they have to host a Napoli side on Monday night, who are fresh off a demolition of Bologna 6-0 in midweek.
This means that should the Inter gain three points against the Zebrette, Roma will go into the Napoli game only four points clear with three games to go. Roma then face Genoa away (a game Inter lost), Chievo at home (they just destroyed Frosinone 5-1) and finally AC Milan at San Siro. Inter's last three games see them take on Lazio away (a tough fixture), Empoli in the last home game and Sassuolo away. In fairness, both teams are capable of dropping points in this run-in, but despite losing to Genoa midweek Inter played fairly well.
If the task at hand resembles a last-ditch attempt for glory, that's because in reality it is. The Nerazzurri look up for the challenge and if the Gazzetta Dello Sport is to be believed, Mancini is looking at presenting a very offensive lineup that will feature Marcelo, Brozovic, Adem Ljajic, Ivan Perisic, Stevan Jovetic and Mauro Icardi in an aggressive 4-3-2-1.
Udinese are not a guaranteed three points however, their win all but ended Napoli's title bid. Coach Luigi De Canio is certainly aware of Inter's want to finish in a strong position but has also made his feelings clear about finishing the season in a positive manner himself. Speaking in the build up to the game he insisted that avoiding relegation was the bare minimum that the Zebrette wish to achieve.
The season has seen Inter take some giant steps forward and some small ones back, but as Bergomi had said, it is the manner of how they conduct themselves from now until the end of the season that will truly be the measure of the team. Should the Nerazzurri finish the campaign on a positive note and still miss out of Europe's biggest competition, then the feeling of how far they have come and what they have gained in character, will outweigh the doubters asking what could have been.
Udinese won't be easy, but this is now the beginning of what could be a strong finish.