Inter Milan continued their perfect start to the Champions League this season with a convincing 4-0 win over Union Saint-Gilloise.
Keen to forget last season’s final, where they were thrashed 5-0 by Paris St-Germain, Inter swept Union aside with four different goalscorers and they have now won their opening three matches without conceding a goal.
Denzel Dumfries opened the scoring in the 41st minute as he took advantage of a scramble in the Union box to lash home from close range.
And Inter doubled their lead just before the break when Lautaro Martinez swept past Kjell Scherpen to finish off a blistering counter-attack and grab his third Champions League goal of the season.
Hakan Calhanoglu added a third from the penalty spot after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review showed Kevin Mac Allister – the brother of Liverpool midfielder Alexis – had blocked a header by Martinez with his hand.
Moments after missing an open goal, Francesco Pio Esposito redeemed himself as he poked in Ange-Yoan Bonny’s cut-back.
Belgian side Union had enjoyed a bright start as they forced a goalline clearance from Martinez, while Yann Sommer was needed to stop efforts from Promise David and Mathias Rasmussen in the opening moments.
But Inter were clinical with their chances and Cristian Chivu’s side find themselves second in the 36-team league phase, level on points with last season’s champions PSG and Arsenal.
They’ll host Kazakh club Kairat Almaty at the San Siro in their next Champions League fixture on 5 November, while 23rd-placed Union will travel to Atletico Madrid on 4 November.