Inter Milan 1 - 0 Chievo: Inter Milan victory lifts pressure off Roberto Mancini

Roberto Mancini's ailing Inter Milan claimed an overdue Serie A victory - despite the best efforts of Andrea Seculin.

Mauro Icardi's 48th-minute goal separated the teams at San Siro, but the Nerazzurri might have run riot if not for the heroics of Chievo's goalkeeper.

The 1-0 victory was not enough to lift Inter back into third place as Fiorentina managed to clinch a 2-1 home win over Carpi.

Inter needed to respond quickly to their 3-0 derby drubbing by AC Milan and duly attacked Chievo with gusto.

They had not accounted for the Flying Donkeys' debutant keeper Seculin, however. The 25-year-old made fine saves to stop Eder, Icardi and Geoffrey Kondogbia inside the opening half-hour alone.

Marcelo Brozovic then twice went close to beating the Friulian and Gary Medel shot narrowly wide as half-time drew closer.

Seculin's sheet was finally blotted three minutes after the restart, with Icardi applying the killer touch to the ball amid a goalmouth scramble.

The pressure was now off for the under-siege stopper and he took the opportunity to showcase his skills throughout the second half.

Icardi and Brozovic - and even centre-back Miranda - fancied their chances against Seculin but he punched all their attempts away, with Jeison Murillo falling foul of the animated keeper on 80 minutes.

Chievo had offered nothing in attack but almost nicked a point at the death. Filippo Costa's cross from the left found Sergio Pellissier in an excellent position - the captain could not quite find the target.