Inter midfielder Hakan Çalhanoğlu capped off the 2025-26 campaign with a Coppa Italia winner's medal alongside his Scudetto, as Cristian Chivu's Inter defeated Lazio 2-0 in the final at the Olimpico to complete the Double. While the 32-year-old wasn't the headline name on the night, the season's statistics reveal a more complete story.

His influence, however, runs deeper than individual accolades. Çalhanoğlu finished the Serie A campaign with nine goals and four assists across 22 league matches, maintaining an average rating of 7.50 — numbers that place him among the most productive deep-lying midfielders in the division. For a player who turned 32 in February, that output is not a sign of decline; it is evidence of a player operating at the peak of his tactical maturity.

Inter's season statistics underline the foundation he helped lay. Chivu's side accumulated 85 points from 36 matches — 27 wins, four draws, five defeats — scoring 85 goals while conceding only 31. Such a miserly defensive record doesn't happen without a midfielder who can both protect the backline and initiate from deep. Çalhanoğlu's positioning in that role is the crucial link between Inter's defensive solidity and their attacking output.

The Coppa Italia final against Lazio merely confirmed what the league table had already suggested: this Inter side is the most coherent unit in the country this season. The 2-0 result at the Olimpico, on Lazio's own ground, was not a fortunate night — it was the logical conclusion of a campaign built on consistency and tactical clarity.

There's a subplot worth keeping an eye on. Reports have circulated linking Aleksandar Stankovic, currently at Club Brugge, to a potential return to Inter this summer, with Premier League clubs also said to be interested. How the squad is reshaped around Çalhanoğlu matters: at 32, with an AI potential score of 60, the club's long-term planning is shifting. The question for the Nerazzurri is not whether Çalhanoğlu can sustain this level — this season suggests he can — but whether the squad around him is being built to extend the cycle or begin the next one.

Nine goals, four assists, a league title, a cup. The season is closed. The decisions that follow will define whether it was a peak or a platform.