The Italian press slated Inter striker Lautaro Martinez for his unimpressive cameo appearance in Argentina’s World Cup win over Australia.
The Nerazzurri forward came on in the 71st minute of the match in place of Julian Alvarez and failed to make the difference at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, putting in a disappointing shift in the Round of 16 of the tournament.
Lautaro had four clear shots on goal, producing an expected goals of 0.58, but he was unable to find the back of the net, remaining frustrated on the pitch.
La Gazzetta dello Sport were harsh in their assessment of Lautaro, suggesting that he had “Lukaku syndrome: he had four chances, he didn’t convert one, the first three through his own fault. He would like to break the world, but he did worse than ever.”
Corriere della Sera agreed with this and also highlighted how this match was played in the same stadium that saw Romelu Lukaku play one of his worst ever games in Belgium’s 0-0 draw with Croatia, noting “in the stadium of Lukaku’s flop, he also missed a goal that looked easy, another one denied by Ryan.”
Tuttosport echoed these sentiments and were disappointed with the chances wasted by the Inter striker, saying “he had the time to eat, twice, the third in front of goal.”
Lautaro’s ratings in the Italian newspapers:
La Gazzetta dello Sport: 5
Corriere dello Sport: 5
Corriere della Sera: 5
Tuttosport: 5