Lautaro Martínez cried as he recalled his absence from the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the subsequent title in Qatar 2022.
The Inter striker revived Jorge Sampaoli's decision not to take him to the World Cup in Russia and told the details of the injury that afflicted him during the following match.
Since his first matches wearing the Racing Club de Avellaneda shirt in 2016, Lautaro Martínez became a clear candidate to take over as the Argentine national team 's forward . Such was the Toro 's level with the Academy that he earned a place on the pre-list for the 2018 World Cup in Russia , although he did not make the cut of 23 players made by Jorge Sampaoli . However, he had revenge and was able to be crowned champion of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar , although he did so despite experiencing severe discomfort in one of his ankles.
Now, in an interview with the official channel of his current team, Inter Milan , the Bahía Blanca native gave a harrowing account of the adversities he had to overcome at both World Cups. “Winning a World Cup is always special, very beautiful, and also very difficult. And also because of everything I experienced at the World Cup. I always gave my all, and sometimes you don't see these things ,” he explained.
As tears filled her eyes, she added: “I got to play in a World Cup with an ankle like that because I always wanted to be on the pitch, I always wanted to coach. And for me, missing the World Cup in Russia was a huge blow. Going to the World Cup in Qatar with my ankle like that wasn't what I wanted .”
Finally, he spoke about his strong personality and how it impacts his life. “But that's just the way I am. I give my all every day and don't look at what's next. That's how I live every day, with my daughters, on a personal level, and in football . That's how I am. That's how I think, that's all. I'm sorry,” Martínez remarked, while struggling to hide his tears.
It's worth remembering that Lautaro arrived as a regular starter for the national team coached by Lionel Scaloni . Despite that, after the 2-1 loss in the debut against Saudi Arabia and the 2-0 victory against Mexico - he came off in the 63rd minute -, added to the physical problems he was suffering from, he lost his place to Julián Álvarez . Since then, he came off the bench in the following matches, except for the semifinals against Croatia , where he didn't get any minutes. At the same time, although he couldn't score a goal in regulation time, he did convert the decisive shot in the penalty shootout against the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.
For his part, regarding the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Sampaoli included him on the pre-list of 35 players for the tournament and also went to see him at a Racing match at the Cilindro de Avellaneda , fueling rumors of his call-up to that World Cup. Despite this, the Albiceleste coach decided to leave him out of those named. “These are spur-of-the-moment decisions. I came to see them, I value them. It's better that they weren't here today to play against us. They are very good players, who feel the football that I also feel. At that moment, a decision had to be made, and I thought that, given the short distance, I decided on players who had more experience in those events ,” the former coach argued at the time.
Currently, while he's enjoying excellent form with Inter, where he's scored 18 goals and is fighting for a third title (Serie A, UEFA Champions League, and Coppa Italia), he was left out of the squad for the March FIFA World Cup at the last minute. Despite Lautaro Martínez making himself available to the coaching staff at the Ezeiza Stadium, they decided to remove him due to a " muscle injury to the hamstring of his lower left limb ," according to the Albiceleste in a statement on their social media.
" We were initially counting on him, but he arrived later than the rest, and we found out he was injured . We prepared for the match without him, and the plans we had 15 days before are useless. We hope he recovers because he's very important ," Lionel Scaloni explained at a press conference .
Thus, Toro will not be able to participate in a special double date of the South American Qualifiers , as La Scaloneta will have to face two top-level opponents. First, they will travel to Montevideo to face Uruguay , while four days later they will host Brazil at the Monumental Stadium .
blogpay
Total Comments: 0