Inter Milan Captain Martinez Blasts Team After Club World Cup Exit
Inter were stunned by a resilient Fluminense side, with the Italians failing to pose a real threat until the closing stages, leaving striker Martinez frustrated as he called on his teammates to show greater commitment.
"I want to fight for the major titles. Anyone who wants to stay at Inter, fine, let's fight. But anyone who doesn't want to stay can leave," the Argentine told reporters.
"We need players who want to be here. We're wearing an important shirt. We need a top-level mentality, or please leave."
Inter arrived at the revamped Club World Cup as title contenders but, aside from a 2-0 win over River Plate in the group stage, the Serie A side had an inconsistent campaign —beating Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds with a last-minute winner and being held to a 1-1 draw by Mexican side Monterrey.
Their last-16 exit adds to a frustrating season in which they failed to win domestic silverware and were crushed 5-0 by Paris St Germain in last month's Champions League final.
"It was a long and tiring season, we finished empty-handed. It is a general message," Martinez added.
"In order to stay up there and fight for titles, we must be eager ... I apologize to the fans who came here to follow us closely. I am the captain and I want to keep things at the top."
Inter will kick off their Serie A campaign at home to Torino in August.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asharq Al-Awsat
39 minutes ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Mbappe Makes His Club World Cup Debut in Real Madrid's Win over Juventus
Kylian Mbappe jogged, clapped his hands together and waved to a crowd of excited fans before checking into the Club World Cup for the first time. From there, the Real Madrid star didn't need to do much for his club to advance past Juventus into the tournament's quarterfinals. Gonzalo García, who had started Madrid's four matches while Mbappe dealt with an illness, scored what turned out to be the winning goal on a header Tuesday afternoon before subbing out of the match. Mbappe replaced him in the 68th minute of the 1-0 win in the round of 16, interacting with the crowd that chanted his name before taking off his warmup suit. He was active on the pitch and received a few passes from Vinicius Junior despite not scoring. Mbappe had a gastrointestinal illness before Real Madrid's opening Club World Cup match and was treated at a hospital. He sat out all three group matches as Madrid won two and drew the other. In his place, the 21-year-old García scored three goals, with a goal contribution in every match of the tournament. After coach Xabi Alonso said Monday it was possible Mbappe could make his highly anticipated Club World Cup debut, the French star arrived with the team several hours before the game was set to begin at Hard Rock Stadium. He walked onto the field ahead of Tuesday's match to an ovation from the fans in the soggy venue that had seen downpours throughout the afternoon. Mbappe's return brings star power to a tournament that took a hit when Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were eliminated in the round of 16 by Mbappe's and Messi's former club, Paris Saint-Germain.
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Gonzalo García's header powers Real Madrid past Juventus 1-0 and into Club World Cup quarterfinals
Breakout tournament star Gonzalo García scored his third goal of the Club World Cup to power Real Madrid past Juventus 1–0 in the round of 16 on Tuesday afternoon and into the quarterfinals. García has started all four of Real Madrid's matches because of a gastrointestinal illness to star striker Kylian Mbappé. The 21-year-old broke a second-half tie with a header in the 54th minute, giving him a goal contribution in every match of the tournament. García subbed out in the 68th as Mbappé checked in, making his Club World Cup debut after he was briefly hospitalized with the illness. He missed Real Madrid's three group stage matches. García's header Tuesday came after Real Madrid had forced Juventus goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio into consecutive spectacular saves in the opening minutes of the second half. It was an incredible performance from the Italian goalie, whose 10 saves kept the match close. It was a scoreless and evenly contested first half – the first time either team had been held without a goal in the opening half of a match in the tournament. Both sides had chances, including Randal Kolo Muani's effort that went over the bar seven minutes in and Federico Valverde's shot that was denied by Di Gregorio before the end of the half. But Real Madrid overwhelmed Juventus in the second half, finishing with 11 shots on target to 2. Key moment: There were loud cheers from the 62,149 fans at Hard Rock Stadium when Mbappé came into the game. Many were wearing his jersey and yelling 'Mbappé! Mbappé!' Takeaways: Real Madrid will face the winner of Tuesday night's match between Borussia Dortmund and Monterrey on Saturday at MetLife Stadium for a spot in the semifinals.
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
Saudi Arabia's great football experiment is paying off
MANCHESTER, England: The great Saudi Arabian football experiment is on full show at the Club World Cup. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport The Kingdom, which is spending billions of dollars to become a major player in the world's most popular sport, scored a big win on the field Monday when Al-Hilal beat Premier League giants Manchester City 4-3 to advance to the quarterfinals. It was a seismic result in football terms; possibly the biggest upset of the tournament and precisely the type of statement Saudi Arabia has wanted to make since embarking on a project that will ultimately see it stage the World Cup in 2034. 'We wanted to show that Al-Hilal has the talent, the power to be here,' said defender Kalidou Koulibaly, who was among a slew of star players paid fortunes to leave Europe's top clubs for the Saudi Pro League in recent years. Superstar signings and ones that got away The biggest of them all was Cristiano Ronaldo, who completed one of the most stunning moves in football history when joining Al-Nassr for a reported salary of up to $200 million a year in 2022. That deal prompted a spectacular recruitment drive by Saudi teams — backed by the Kingdom's sovereign wealth fund — and in came superstars like Neymar and Karim Benzema, while audacious attempts were made to sign Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe. Confirmation that Saudi Arabia had won the right to host the World Cup came in December. On the field, the Club World Cup was the first chance for the country to make a global statement about the growth of its domestic game, which is largely unheralded outside of Asia. It is likely why Al-Hilal — Saudi Arabia's most successful team — were so eager to make another marquee signing before the tournament began and tried, but failed, to lure Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes. They pulled off a coup by hiring coach Simone Inzaghi. The Italian arrived after leading Inter Milan to a second Champions League final in three seasons and he is already making a mark with his new team after drawing 1-1 against Real Madrid in the group stage and then beating City. 'We had to do something extraordinary because we knew how good Manchester City are, we knew we had to climb Mount Everest without oxygen, and we were great,' Inzaghi said. Saudi football has faced doubts The broader picture is what Al-Hilal's run says about the standard of football in Saudi Arabia, which has been dismissed by some as a cash grab for players, who can earn far more than if they'd remained in Europe. 'Let's see now if they will criticize us after these games,' said midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who joined Al-Hilal from Italian team Lazio. 'It's not like how they are speaking about the league.' Despite recruiting so many players from Europe's top clubs — including Champions League winners N'Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino — it is difficult to judge the quality of the Saudi league. To put Al-Hilal's run into context: While they may have won a record 19 league titles and four Asian championships, they are not the Saudi Arabia's reigning national champion, having been beaten to the title by Benzema's Al-Ittihad last season. Another Saudi team, Al-Ahli, who count former Liverpool forward Firmino and ex-Manchester City winger Mahrez among their players, won the Asian Champions League this year. Ronaldo, meanwhile, is yet to win the title in three attempts with Al-Nassr — pointing to the depth of strength in the league. Al-Hilal's performances have also come despite releasing Brazil great Neymar in January and with leading scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic having played no part so far because of injury. Can Al Hilal win the Club World Cup? The question now is how far Al-Hilal can go. Next up is Brazil's Fluminense in the quarterfinals in Orlando on Friday. City's exit — along with Inter Milan's defeat to Fluminense — has opened up that side of the draw, which also features Palmeiras and Chelsea. On paper it looks like the favorable side of the draw, with Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain on the other side. But the success of Brazilian teams has been another theme of the tournament and Al-Hilal will have to beat at least one more if they are to advance to the final. Inzaghi, however, is used to overachieving. His two Champions League finals with Inter Milan came despite having an aging team and relying on savvy deals in the transfer market to pick up free agents and veteran players. Inter's victory against Barcelona in the semifinals of this year's competition was one of the all-time classic contests — winning 7-6 on aggregate. Al-Hilal's impressive run has come after Inzaghi spent just one week training with the team before the tournament. Even if they are eliminated in the next round, a quarterfinals appearance would represent an outstanding campaign for a team that was not expected to compete for the title. Saudi Arabia's investment in sport is undoubtedly paying off and Al-Hilal's run is succeeding in raising the profile of its soccer league.
