Lautaro Martinez Becomes First Serie A Player to Score Four Goals Off Bench in Last 30 Seasons

Lautaro Martinez  has earned his place in the Italian soccer league history books.

The 26-year-old Argentine professional soccer player made Serie A history with four goals as a substitute to fire Inter Milan to a 4-0 victory at Salernitana on Saturday and propel them back to the top of Serie A.

Lautaro Martinez  Martinez is the first player to score four goals off the bench in the last 30 seasons in Serie A, since three points for a win were introduced in 1994-95.

The hosts had kept Inter Milan at bay for the first hour, but fell apart after Martinez came on nine minutes after the break and bagged four goals in 27 minutes, including one from the penalty spot.

Inter had dropped three points below AC Milan in the table after their rivals won 2-0 against Lazio earlier on Saturday, but returned to the summit with 18 points from seven matches. Salernitana are 19th with three points.

Inter captain Martinez has now scored nine goals in seven Serie A matches and holds a clear lead as the league’s top scorer.

“I scored four goals but the important thing is that Inter won the game,” he told Sky Sport Italia, adding that turning things around after the 2-1 loss to Sassuolo on Wednesday had been a priority.

“It was crucial for us. We lost a game at San Siro that I don’t think we deserved but we conceded two goals from our errors, so we had to win today.”

While Inter dominated the match’s early stages, Salernitana gradually found their footing and managed to control the tempo in a goalless first half.

Martinez opened the scoring for Inter in the 62nd minute when he expertly collected Marcus Thuram‘s low cross into the box and delicately chipped the ball over Salernitana keeper Guillermo Ochoa.

Three minutes later, Mateusz Legowski‘s apparent equaliser was disallowed due to an early offside run, eliciting boos from the home fans.

Martinez got his second goal after 77 minutes when he confidently finished a pass from Nicolò Barella, who set him up from 12 yards out, with a first-time strike.

Martinez completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot with five minutes remaining, after a foul by defender Matteo Lovato, who had pulled Thuram’s shirt.

He then concluded the evening by converting Carlos Augusto‘s cross, firing from 10 yards out, a minute before stoppage time.

Inter manager Simone Inzaghi had high praise for Martinez.

“It is an excellent start but in my two years here he was always consistent and tonight was the time to have a little rest,” he said, referring to Martinez’s start on the bench.

“He is our leader, the captain, he must continue like this.”

Inter Milan host a Champions League group-stage match against Benfica on Tuesday, followed by a Serie A home game against Bologna next Saturday.

Lionel Messi Helps Lead Argentina into World Cup Semifinals

Lionel Messi is one step closer to World Cup glory…

The 35-year-old Argentine soccer star converted his penalty in the shootout and goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez saved two attempts to give Argentina a dramatic 4-3 penalty shootout victory over Netherlands on Friday.

Lionel MessiIn the process the team claimed a spot in the World Cup semifinals after initially giving up a two-goal lead in a late collapse in regulation time.

The match finished 2-2 after extra time, with Messi scoring one goal and setting up another. The Netherlands equalized in the 11th minute of second-half stoppage time.

Messi provided a superb assist with a delicately threaded pass to defender Nahuel Molina who slotted past goalkeeper Andries Noppert to hand Argentina a first-half lead. The Paris Saint-Germain forward added Argentina’s second on 73 minutes with a well-taken penalty.

Messi scored from the penalty spot in the 73rd to make it 2-0 with his fourth goal of this year’s World Cup.

It took him to 10 goals in the World Cup, tied with Gabriel Batistuta for the most for Argentina, and 94 goals in total in his 169 international games.

“Argentina are among the four best in the world because we showed we know how to play every game with the same desire and the same intensity,” Messi said after advancing to the World Cup semifinal for the second time in his career.

“A lot of joy, a lot of happiness. We didn’t have to suffer and playing extra time or going to penalties. But we got through and it’s impressive.”

Wout Weghorst scored a header on 82 to claw one back for Netherlands to set up a tense end that repeatedly boiled over. Netherlands were handed a final lifeline with what looked to be the last kick of the match when midfielder Teun Koopmeiners stepped up to take a free-kick on the edge of the box before sliding a pass under the wall and slotted home by Weghorst.

Enzo Fernandez hit the post near the end of extra time and was the only Argentina player to fail to score in the shootout.

Netherlands defender Virgil van Dijk and winger Steven Berghuis missed the side’s opening two penalties, while Argentina converted their first three before Fernandez missed their fourth. However, Lautaro Martinez stepped up and slotted home to secure a drama-filled victory and set up a semifinal clash with Croatia on Tuesday.

The loss for Netherlands eliminates them from the tournament, as well as signalling the end of head coach Louis van Gaal‘s third spell in charge. The 71-year-old coach, who is undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, had already made clear ahead of the tournament this would be his last in charge.

Lionel Messi Helps Lead Argentina into Copa America Final Against Brazil

Lionel Messi is celebrating a big win…

The 34-year-old Argentine professional footballer, currently a free agent after his Barcelona contract expired, helped lead Argentina to victory, as his team beat Colombia on penalties on Tuesday to set up a Copa America final against Brazil.

Lionel Messi

Argentina won 3-2 following a 1-1 draw in normal time in Brasilia.

Messi continued his special tournament by assisting a 7th-minute Lautaro Martinez goal, but an off-balance Luis Diaz restored level terms in the second half.

Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and former Arsenal man David Ospina took center stage for penalties, where Messi smashed his home past Ospina.

Martinez then saved penalties from Spurs’ Davinson Sanchez, Everton’s Yerry Mina, and Boca JuniorsEdwin Cardona to lead Argentina

https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1412579522252349443

Barcelona Expresses Interest in Eric Garcia

There’s growing interest in Eric Garcia… 

Futbol Club Barcelona has enquired about the 19-year-old Spanish footballer’s situation at Manchester City as they line up a potential move to bring the defender back to Camp Nou, according to ESPN.

Eric Garcia

Manchester City was quick to knock back Barca‘s initial approach, with high-ranking executives at the English club making it clear that Garcia isn’t for sale. 

Team manager Pep Guardiola is especially fond of Garcia and, while ManCity hope to sign a new centerback this summer, they also want to keep him involved as part of the first-team squad.

However, there is also an understanding at the club that the uncertainty over Guardiola’s long-term future could become a problem at some point. Players are also in the dark and with two years left on his contract, Garcia is in a strong negotiating position.

This provoked Barca to ask about his availability during recent talks between the two clubs regarding a possible swap deal involving right-backs Nelson Semedo and Joao Cancelo.

Garcia was considered one of the brightest prospects in Barca’s La Masia academy when he decided to leave in 2017 to join Premier League champions Manchester City,

Guardiola handed him his full debut in a League Cup game against Leicester in 2018 and he has made 11 appearances this season, starting twice in the league and once in the Champions League.

He’s also been capped five times by Spain under-21s and Barca have followed his development closely since he left three years ago.

A number of different sources at Barca said the club view Garcia as a “good fit” centerback for the team’s style of football. He was brought up on the club’s philosophy and one of his major strengths is his ability on the ball.

Barca, who missed out on Matthijs de Ligt to Juventus last summer, have been searching for a central defender for a long time as they contemplate a future without Gerard Pique, who turned 33 in February.

Manchester City’s reluctance to sell makes a move for Garcia this summer unlikely, especially as Barca expect to be less active in the transfer market due to the effects the coronavirus pandemic has had on their budget. They will focus on their main target, Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez, and will not have money left over to invest elsewhere.

But sources tell ESPN that Barca will not give up on Barcelona native Garcia in the long-term and will continue to monitor his situation as he moves into the final two years of his contract at the Etihad Stadium.