Andrea Ranocchia's bizarre own goal knocked the wind out of Inter in their lacklustre 2-0 Serie A loss at Genoa, according to head coach Luciano Spalletti.
The match at Stadio Luigi Ferraris was goalless until the final attack of the first half, when Milan Skriniar's clearance struck centre-back partner Ranocchia and flew into the Inter net on Saturday.
Goran Pandev scored against his former club in the 59th minute and an Inter side lacking injured duo Mauro Icardi and Ivan Perisic were devoid of attacking inspiration for the most part.
"It was a game in the balance and in the first half the best chances came to us, but when you happen to have such an episode as the one just before the interval, in a period like this, it is not easy to regain confidence," Spalletti told a post-match news conference.