Inter welcomed Champions League debutants Kairat Almaty at the San Siro on Wednesday, having won their opening three games in the competition. Ahead of the game, Inter boss Chivu spoke about Martinez’s lack of goals in recent Serie A fixtures ahead of the encounter. “The captain is on the field because we need his spirit, he is a leader and his presence is very important,” he told Amazon Prime Video Italia as he opted against resting Martinez in a side that was heavily rotated – the likes of Manuel Akanji, Marcus Thuram, Hakan Calhanoglu, and Alessandro Bastoni started on the bench.
Although the Argentine striker found the back of the net against Union Saint-Gilloise in the previous league phase outing of the Champions League, his last goal in the Italian top-flight came against Cremonese on October 4, over a month ago. He has since gone four games without scoring a league goal, his total tally a meagre three goals in 10 Serie A games.
“I made a gesture to Lautaro: to smile,” Chivu revealed. “I told him he needs to rediscover happiness and passion.”
The goal did come on Wednesday, as Martinez opened the scoring in the 45th minute. His celebrations were jubilant and passionate, and his goal would ultimately prove to be more crucial than one would have expected against a Champions League debutant. The Kazakh giants gave Inter a run for their money, equalising in the 55th minute via Ofri Arad. However, defender Carlos Augusto restored the lead 12 minutes later to ensure Inter registered their fourth win on the trot in the competition.