Second half goals from Lautaro Martinez and Valentin Carboni on the stroke of 90 minutes has seen Inter Milan come from a goal down to claim a dramatic 2-1 win over Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan at the ongoing FIFA Club World Cup on Saturday.
Ryoma Watanabe’s 11th-minute strike looked to have earned the Japanese side a shock victory, but Martinez’s spectacular overhead kick and Carboni’s stoppage-time strike eliminated the Japanese side from the competition.
Playing under Cristian Chivu for the second time after Simone Inzaghi’s departure this month, Inter dominated the first half but paid the price for failing to track Watanabe’s run when the winger rounded off a slick counter-attack with a low finish.
Martinez was unfortunate to see his header crash off the crossbar eight minutes later, but on the whole Inter’s finishing was poor with all nine of their attempts in the first half missing the target.
The Italians increased the pressure in the second half with 12 shots, including Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s effort that missed the target with the goal gaping. Urawa maintained their defensive discipline while retaining a threat on the break, with Watanabe blazing over from a five-on-three situation with 20 minutes left.
Urawa’s resistance broke down in the 77th minute when Inter captain Martinez hit an overhead kick from a corner-kick to level for Inter. Carboni then pounced on a rebound in the second minute of stoppage time to spark wild celebrations for Inter.
The result leaves Inter on four points after two games, the same as Group E leaders River Plate, who drew 0-0 with Mexican side Monterrey. However Argentina’s River Plate sit top with a better goal difference, having conceded one goal fewer than Inter.