When Edin Dzeko scored a 90th-minute winner to hand Inter a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Venezia in January, it looked like they would storm away with a second-straight Scudetto.
Inter moved four points clear of both Napoli and Milan, having played a game fewer then their rivals.
At that stage, they had recently won the Supercoppa and were two weeks away from a Champions League last-16 first leg against Liverpool. Inter were still on course to win every competition available to them.
However, they lost the following Serie A match, when Olivier Giroud’s brace gave Milan a memorable 2-1 derby victory and reignited the title race.
Fast forward to May and Inter, having once again had their title destiny in their own, threw away their advantage in spectacular fashion, when they lost 2-1 to Bologna – having been a goal ahead – following a late blunder by stand-in goalkeeper Ionut Radu.
The situation has now changed dramatically and Milan can afford to draw one of their final two matches and still win the Scudetto ahead of Inter.
So, taking all of Inter’s ups and downs throughout this campaign, would claiming the Coppa Italia, while missing out on title glory make 2021-22 a successful season?
It’s easy to forget now but Massiliamo Allegri returning to Juve and Antonio Conte leaving Inter to be replaced by Simone Inzaghi at the end of last season meant the Nerazzurri did not start the campaign as heavy favourites to retain their crown. In fact, following the 1-1 draw at home to Juve on October 24, Inter were seven points behind then leaders Napoli.
It was that result which started their 14-match unbeaten run. A sequence which only ended after they lost the derby.
Inzaghi has never won Serie A before and, while he is certainly highly-rated as a manager, it was expected that the transition from Conte, having lost influential players such as Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi, would be an arduous one.
Inter have shown throughout the season they are a work in progress. A team with a strong connection, who play good football but perhaps just need a little more strength in certain areas to be competing for the biggest honours.
They matched Real Madrid at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza before being undone by a late goal and even beat Liverpool at Anfield in their last-16 second leg but were eliminated on aggregate. They showed they weren’t completely overawed by the two Champions League finalists but, despite impressing in glimpses, what they had to offer simply wasn’t enough.
Perhaps it is due to the direct contrast with the previous campaign which would make Inter’s failure to win the title so hard to swallow for their supporters.
Inter and Milan were neck and neck for much of the first half of the 2020-21 and it was in their meeting around the same times as this season’s seemingly definitive derby that Conte’s side stormed to a 3-0 win and never looked back. They would win the title by 12 points.
Of course, having the title destiny in your own hands and then seeing your arch rivals take advantage of a mistake is painful and difficult to accept.
But victory in the Coppa Italia would make Inter winners again. Before the 20-21 title win, Inter hadn’t won a trophy since the FIFA Club World Cup in 2011.
A win at the Stadio Olimpico would make it three trophies in two seasons and that is huge progress for Inter.
Success becomes a habit. It may not be the one they want but it would be a trophy and continue to raise expectations, which is something a club of this stature can only thrive under.