A pulsating Milan derby saw Inter Milan come from two goals down to rally in an incredible second half to come back from the dead and rise to the summit of Serie A.

The derby was billed as a potential classic, and would eventually deliver on that potential, but for the home side at the shared San Siro stadium, a half to forget kicked off this most memorable of matches. Inter were insipid in the first 45 minutes, negated by Milan’s defensive rallying and energy in midfield. By comparison, I Nerazzurri looked pedestrian, and when Zlatan Ibrahimovic assisted Ante Rebic for the opener, it was no less than the Rossoneri deserved. When Ibrahimovic himself headed in from close range right on half-time, it looked like the death knell for Inter’s hopes in both the game and, by extension, the title race.

Momentum is everything, after all. But instead of the clanging chime of doom to Inter’s ambitions, the two-goal deficit inspired them to ring the changes and turn the game on its head. Six minutes into the second half, Marcelo Brozovic volleyed a goal back, and when Matias Vecino equalised two minutes later, the comeback was on.

If there was a period of uncertainty, neither side wishing to concede, then it always looked likely to end, and when Stefan de Vrij headed home for 3-2, it was the Dutchman’s first header since the corresponding fixture a year earlier. Now A.C. Milan needed to push for an equaliser, and they went for it with everything they had, Ibrahimovic not content with becoming the oldest player to score in the Milan derby.