FIVE THE MAGIC NUMBER AS INTER MAKE HISTORY TO PROVE THEIR STATUS

There is no doubt who the top dogs are in the city of Milan now.

The only lingering question is whether Inter’s latest derby humiliation of their rivals makes them the best in the country.

In that regard, the table doesn’t lie. Simone Inzaghi’s side are the only side with a perfect record and are two points clear of the chasing pack after four games.

Nobody has scored more than their 13 goals. Nobody has conceded less than their one, which came when Rafael Leão offered Milan brief hope in the derby by reducing the arrears to 2-1 in the second half.

After that strike, Henrikh Mkhitaryan grabbed his second of the game, Hakan Çalhanoğlu netted from the penalty spot against his old club before Davide Frattesi capped off a memorable week by sliding home in injury-time to make it 5-1.

It marked the first time since March 1974 that the Nerazzurri have hit five in Serie A in this fixture – a number which proved to be a theme from their stunning Saturday win.

That game also marked the fifth straight success in the Derby della Madonnina for Inter, who have never enjoyed such a run against their rivals before.

In addition, it is also only the third time that Inter have ever scored five against Milan during a game in the first round of league fixtures, although things were much more comfortable this time.

On the previous occasions, they won 5-4 in 1932 before a 6-5 thriller in 1949!

This time, they didn’t need that many but they got them anyway, firmly painting the city blue and black – colours it has become accustomed to of late.

Since the start of 2018, the sides have met 18 times and Inter have won 12 and drawn three, scoring 35 times, while shipping just 12 during that run.

This latest loss was the most damning of all, a true humiliation handed down to the Rossoneri as the same old mistakes continued to hurt them, even if their coach bristled at such suggestions.

“I take heart from the first 70 minutes, although the last 15 must be reviewed,” Stefano Pioli told DAZN. “I’m sorry for the result but I don’t think we deserved a defeat this heavy. We must be smarter.”

His opposite number will have a degree of sympathy for Pioli, who is feeling the heat for Milan’s ineffective showings in recent derbies.

After all, it was just five short months ago when his side were on a poor run of form which led to serious question marks about his position in the dugout long-term.

Since then, Inter have won a Coppa Italia, reached the Champions League final (swatting the Diavolo aside en route), registered a derby win for the ages to move top of the table and Inzaghi himself has been rewarded with a new contract.

And again in the biggest game, he got everything right.

With most of Italy calling on Frattesi to start after his star showing for the Azzurri at San Siro during the international break, Inzaghi somewhat controversially opted for Mkhitaryan – who repaid him with two goals and an assist.

And when he did throw Frattesi into the fray, even he got among the goals – a sign of just how much everything is clicking at Inter even this early in the campaign.

There is a long way to go, as the coach was at pains to stress afterwards, but a fifth trophy as Inter coach is only a matter of time for him based on the early evidence.