"The change of pace came from the victory against Roma last year. His secret? He combines well with all the forwards," Beppe Bergomi said on Sky Sport Italia, and Marcus Thuram's run at Inter has given that view some weight. Since 15 October, Lautaro Martínez has been out with a muscle injury, and Thuram has gone from sidekick to the attacking reference at a time when Inter need him most.

Thuram's output without Lautaro

Before the match against Como, Thuram had five league goals. After the 2-0 win, his tally rose to 22 involvements in 27 matches, with 15 goals and seven assists. That is a proper workload for a forward who was originally expected to share the load, not carry it. Six of those league goals have come this season, and the shape of his contribution now looks more complete than a simple finishing spell.

The Roma debate is still open. Bergomi links Thuram's change of pace to the victory against AS Roma last year, but the rest of the evidence points to a broader lift, not a single turning point. The most recent piece came against Como, where Thuram scored in a 2-0 win and Inter stayed second in Serie A with 28 points after 11 matches. Cesc Fabregas said Inter were "too strong" and called them one of the best teams on the counter-attack and from set pieces, while C. Chivu said the attackers were "very good" in their pressing and central compactness.

Inter's structure around him

That tactical side matters because Thuram is not doing this alone. Chivu said the attackers were oriented, took away Como's ball circulation with the right pressing times and helped remove the central game. Fàbregas was even more direct about the danger Inter carried in transition. It fits the bigger point around Thuram, which is that his goals are landing inside a team that has won four of its last five league matches and still looks hard to unsettle when it gets its timing right.

The title race is still live around Inter and AS Roma, with Roma on 27 points after 11 matches and Inter on 28. AC Milan sit fourth on 24, which keeps the chasing pack close, but Thuram is the one player who has clearly changed his own status during Lautaro's absence. If Inter keep getting this version of him, the chase at the top stays very much open, and Thuram's next league appearance will arrive with 22 involvements already on the board.

Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →