Inter Milan took a significant step towards their Serie A title with a commanding 3-0 victory over Cagliari at the San Siro on Friday evening, with all three goals coming in the second half to extend their lead at the top of the Italian top flight to 12 points.

After a sluggish opening 45 minutes — in which Cagliari, a club from the island of Sardinia, actually tested Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez with the game's first shot on target — the hosts grew into the contest after the break. Marcus Thuram broke the deadlock seven minutes into the second half, tapping home a Federico Dimarco low cross at the back post to settle the San Siro crowd. Nicolò Barella quickly doubled the lead with a powerful strike into the top corner against his hometown club, a goal he was reluctant to celebrate before being hoisted aloft by Thuram. Substitute Piotr Zielinski put the finishing touch on the performance with a first-time strike from outside the area deep into added time, with Dutch international Denzel Dumfries, who played the full match alongside compatriot Stefan de Vrij, providing the assist.

The result leaves Inter on 78 points, with second-placed Napoli — the reigning champions — on 66, though Napoli have a game in hand and host Lazio on Saturday. Cagliari remain 16th in the standings, six points above the relegation zone. With five matches remaining in the league season, Inter have now won three consecutive games after a difficult spell that yielded just two points from three matches.

Barella, reflecting on a turbulent personal season, was candid after the match.