Unlike Paris Saint-Germain or Manchester City, Inter don’t really have any concerns regarding their future in the Champions League. Sixth with thirteen points on the clock and only one goal conceded – that of former Parisian Nordi Mukiele during the defeat against Bayer Leverkusen (1-0) –, the Nerazzurri are in a chair to qualify directly in 8es of final. A trip to Sparta Prague this Wednesday evening, then the reception of an AS Monaco in convalescence at San Siro to complete its first lap, the upcoming program for Simone Inzaghi’s troop is not likely to create any problems head to the Italian technician. Especially since these first days of 2025, despite a lost Italian Super Cup final, Inzaghi contemplates with joy the accelerated revitalization of his captain Lautaro Martínez. Not really the news that his future Czech and Monegasque opponents were expecting.
The spleen is over
For most players, a month and a half without scoring is a pretty common desert crossing that they have to live with. Quite simply because they have no choice. As if this was the price to pay for the Argentinian who, thanks to this victorious and extremely important header against Venice on November 3, had put an end to his own personal drought of 249 days without scoring at San Siro. A hardly believable scenario, while Inter had in the meantime been Italian champions, that no one at that time questioned Lautaro’s enormous involvement in this success, but which makes one understand in part of the person concerned following his average start to the season when he told the club media that this long period was made up of « difficult times ». Since the start of the season, in fits and starts and even if the Inter machine was running, he was only a shadow of himself. He did not display the same technical performance, sometimes missing things that were easy for him, in short he was at the level displayed even when he did not score during his stratospheric last season.
While the others were preparing for a big World Cup, I was always on the pitch: I didn’t miss a single training session until the Champions League final.
On the meadow, in recent weeks, he has seen his partner in crime Marcus Thuram runs the show and takes some of the spotlight in his place: the Frenchman has already scored 13 goals in Serie A, the Argentinian has only scored 8, but beyond the statistical comparison between the two incarnations of this infernal doublet, there was this feeling that Lautaro was no longer as lethal as a few months ago. Rarely, voices among supporters Nerazzurri the most capricious had begun to stand up to their Argentine captain. One day in November, Lautaro even responded dryly to criticism on an Instagram post in these terms: « Also remember that I always do everything for Inter. Like the year of the World Cup when I had a destroyed ankle. While the others were preparing for a big competition, I was always on the pitch: I didn’t miss a single training session until the Champions League final. I played every match. Never forget that before I remember where I get paid. »
-2025, le back-to-back ?
Obviously, the good resolutions have been made and the black bread has been eaten: since the holiday season, Lautaro Martínez has decided to get back into fashion killer. In six matches in all competitions, that’s already four goals and one assist, and this last meeting against Empoli was an opportunity to bring out another case of conscience that statisticians love: by scoring with Marcus Thuram both during in the same match, they ended this current series which dated May 10, 2024 in Frosinone.
Better: Lautaro gradually feels that he “returns to last season’s level” and here too, a fact supports his return to form: he is now Inter’s second best foreign scorer with Mauro Icardi (111 goals) and is therefore only 23 pawns away from overtaking the legend in the field, the Franco-Hungarian “Stefano” Nyers. As Simone Inzaghi recently stated when speaking of Scudetto, « winning is hard. Winning back is even more so ». So to hope to still triumph in difficulty, in a fierce fight with Napoli for the Scudetto and against the other European giants in the Champions League, Inter will really need their captain at his best to hear the birds sing at the late spring. Sparta Prague has been warned: Lautaro Martínez is coming to ruin everything.
Inter keep pace with Napoli
