CREMONA, Italy — The match between Inter Milan and Cremonese was briefly interrupted on Sunday after home goalkeeper Emil Audero was hit by a flare.
The incident occurred at the beginning of the second half. As play progressed in midfield, a flare was thrown from the away section into the penalty area, hitting Audero.
Play was immediately halted as Audero fell to the ground in apparent distress. Medical staff rushed to his aid, while his teammates quickly gathered around their injured goalkeeper.
Though Audero managed to stand up and play resumed, he was seen with a cut on his right leg and reported difficulty hearing in his right ear.
Inter players, along with coach Cristian Chivu, appealed to the fans to maintain decorum.
Having previously played for Inter in the 2023-24 season, Audero shook his head at the away fans shortly before the match resumed three minutes later.
Ultimately, Inter, the Serie A leaders, secured a 2-0 victory, extending their lead at the top of the table to eight points.
Inter opened the scoring in the 16th minute when Lautaro Martinez netted a powerful header from Federico Dimarco’s corner.
The title contenders doubled their lead shortly after the half-hour mark with an outstanding goal from Piotr Zielinski, who received a pass from Luis Henrique, took a touch, and unleashed a left-footed shot into the top corner from 30 yards out.
Following the flare incident, Cremonese almost found an equalizer, but Alessio Zerbin’s attempt was thwarted by a diving save from Yann Sommer.
Martinez also came close to increasing Inter’s lead but sent one header over the bar and was denied by Audero on another try.
This report includes information from The Associated Press and PA.