Alejandro Camano, the agent of Inter striker Lautaro Martinez, has confirmed that his client is dealing with an injury at the World Cup in Qatar.
The 25-year-old Argentinian forward has appeared in all four of his nation’s games at the tournament in Qatar but only started twice, remaining a bench option for the Albiceleste’s last two outings. Lautaro made cameo appearances in the wins over Poland and Australia and doesn’t seem set to start in their quarter-final clash with the Netherlands.
Speaking to Radio La Red, Camano discussed the health of his client Lautaro and why he has struggled to hit the mark in Qatar.
“He has a strong pain in his right ankle, he is having injections to be able to play. Lautaro is very strong up front, but the goals they cancelled out against Saudi Arabia were tough moments for him.
“But he has worked hard to make that pain go away, and as soon as it does, he will fly on the pitch, because he is a world-class goal scorer.”
Camano then commented on Lautaro’s competition for a starting spot with Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez.
“That competition empowers him and Julian, because contrary to what you might believe, they do each other good with it.”
Lautaro has not directly contributed to a single goal across his four World Cup appearances and he’ll be desperate to have an impact in Argentina’s quarter-final clash with the Netherlands.
This is the last World Cup for seven time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, giving Lautaro and Argentina extra motivation to win the tournament.