The Derby della Madonnina, as we know, is not just any match. It’s not only very felt by the audience and the fans at home. It is a primordial, primitive fever, that often completely absorbs the players themselves as well. And the episodes that arise from it are not only sporting feats. Sometimes, games like the Derby can create true “legendary feats”… and surprisingly funny ones as well. Such as in the case of the Derby of the “lemon”.
Benito Lorenzi was not called Veleno (Poison) without reason. The phenomenal attacker of the Inter of the ’40s and ’50s was an angel off the field, as testified by his numerous acts of charity, but he was a devil when he wore the Nerazzurri jersey. His career is full of heated moments, many goals… and even a few scuffles. But the peak of his career came in the match where he excelled the most: the Derby on October 6, 1957. Inter in that game had taken the lead in the early minutes thanks to a penalty, earned by Veleno himself. But just minutes from the end, the referee also awarded a penalty to Milan. In the general commotion made of protests, insults and shoves, Lorenzi, unusually for his character, moved away from the chaos asking the masseur for something to drink. In response, he hands him half a lemon.
And this is where Veleno had his brilliant inspiration. Without anyone, except the Milan fans who were above the goal, noticing, he approached stealthily to the spot, where the ball was already placed and, covered by the chaos of the protests, placed the lemon right under the ball. The Milan fans screamed at the top of their lungs, but no one listened to them. Tito Cucchiaroni, Milan’s penalty taker, stepped up to the spot. “The Lemon! Tito, the Lemon!” The red and black fans yelled at him. The poor player didn’t understand, shrugged his shoulders and shot. The ball, of course, hit the lemon and soared, ending up in curve.
Lorenzi’s final stroke of genius: he runs pretending to celebrate by hugging the Nerazzurri goalkeeper Ghezzi and meanwhile with a kick makes the incriminating peel disappear beyond the end of the field. At the end of the game, the Rossoneri discovered the trick and he risked lynching, but this is another story. Lorenzi was like this: a “evil genius” at the service of good, at the service of Inter. Men and matches of other times, impossible to reproduce in modern football. Certainly, for rivalry, modality and final outcome, the Lemon Derby will always remain one of the most beautiful and crazy in history. Not everyone can win a city derby in that way!
