Inter Milan Captain Sidelined For Serie A Clash Vs Lecce

Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martinez is out for the Nerazzurri’s Serie A home opener against Lecce with a muscle problem.

This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews. They report that the Argentine should be back next weekend against Atalanta.

Inter captain Martinez started in last weekend’s Serie A opening day match away to Genoa.

It had not necessarily initially been expected that Martinez would start that match.

The 27-year-old was the last player in Inter’s squad to return to training over the summer.

This was because Martinez had been in action at the Copa America right to the bitter end. The Inter captain won the competition with Argentina, scoring in the final against Argentina.

Therefore, Martinez was only back in training at the start of August.

Meanwhile, Iranian international Mehdi Taremi was part of Inter’s preseason training camp right from the start. And the 32-year-old enjoyed a positive preseason in the first few friendlies.

Taremi had initially looked to be the starter for the match against Genoa. However, he picked up a muscle problem that disrupted his progress.

Inter Captain Lautaro Martinez Out For Lecce Clash – Return Expected Vs Atalanta

With Taremi not in condition to start last weekend, Martinez actually cut his post-Copa America vacation short by a couple of days.

This allowed the Argentine to have a couple extra days of preparation for the match against Genoa.

Martinez was able to start that match. However, truthfully, it was a fairly anonymous performance by Inter’s captain, who clearly showed signs of a lack of sharpness.

And now, Martinez has picked up some muscle fatigue as he’s worked to regain his best condition.

The problem is not a major one for the Nerazzurri captain. But it is enough that coach Simone Inzaghi has no intention of risking Martinez this evening.

Inter take on Lecce in their first match at the San Siro of the Serie A season, and their second overall.

Martinez will not be part of the squad for this evening’s match. Rather, Taremi will start in attack alongside Marcus Thuram.

However, reports the Gazzetta, a return for Martinez is not far away.

The newspaper anticipates that the 27-year-old should be back in training within a couple of days.

Therefore, there is little doubt that Martinez will be ready to be part of the squad for Friday’s match against Atalanta.