Inter Milan closed their participation in the Club World Cup with a disappointing performance that left more questions than answers. After falling in the Champions League final by a disappointing 5-0, the 2-0 defeat to Fluminense in the round of 16 was the final blow for a team that had already been plagued by doubts since the group stage and is now facing an evident internal fracture, as reflected by captain Lautaro Martinez in his statements afterwards.

"I want to fight for the big titles. Those who want to stay at Inter, fine, we'll fight. Those who don't want to stay, can leave. We need players who want to be here. We wear an important shirt," declared the Argentine striker, visibly annoyed.

Inter, without answers on the pitch and with tensions off it

During the tournament, the Nerazzurri team offered an inconsistent performance. In the group stage, they drew 1-1 with Rayados de Monterrey, narrowly defeated Urawa Red Diamonds 2-1, and beat River Plate 2-0 in a more dignified encounter. However, none of that was enough when Fluminense surprised them from the opening minutes in Orlando. Germán Cano opened the scoring with a header in the third minute after a cross that exposed Inter's defensive errors. From that moment on, Cristian Chivu's team—who replaced Simone Inzaghi—looked imprecise, lacking offensive clarity and relying too much on the individual actions of Lautaro, who hit the post and challenged goalkeeper Fabio, without success. "The message is clear: whoever wants to stay, stays; whoever doesn't, leaves. I saw many things I didn't like," Martínez remarked. His words were echoed by Chivu himself at a press conference: "Lautaro is right. We must all pull in the same direction."

Marotta admits departures; Chivu, No margin for error

President Giuseppe Marotta was also direct when speaking to the Italian press. "Whoever wants to leave Inter, the door is open. Hakan Calhanoglu is one of them, but let's not focus only on him. There will be conversations," he said, making it clear that more departures could occur in the short term.

In the final minutes of the match, Fluminense sealed the result. Hercules took advantage of a poor clearance and sealed the final 2-0 against an already beaten Sommer. The Brazilian team advanced to the quarterfinals and will face Al Hilal, who are fresh off eliminating Manchester City.