Inter Milan have powered into the last 16 of the Club World Cup, scoring a stormy 2-0 victory over River Plate that sealed the Argentinian club’s exit and sparked dramatic scenes at full-time.
Teenage striker Francesco Esposito and Alessandro Bastoni scored the goals to settle a physical contest which saw River finish with nine men.
The final whistle was marred by an ugly melee which saw players from both sides clash as they sprinted off the pitch, with missiles being thrown by River’s fans at Seattle’s Lumen Field.
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Both Argentine teams at the tournament, River and their rivals Boca Juniors, have been eliminated despite their fans creating vibrant atmospheres.
“It’s a shame for all the people who came en masse to watch the team that we couldn’t give them the chance to keep going,” said disappointed River coach Marcelo Gallardo.”
Earlier, the 19-year-old Esposito bagged his first goal for Serie A giants Inter with a lovely strike in the 72nd minute to put the Italians 1-0 up.
The tall teenage striker collected a pass from Petar Sucic, elegantly lost his marker before drilling a shot into the bottom right-hand corner past River goalkeeper Franco Armani.
Bastoni then bagged Inter’s second deep into injury time to seal a win which sets up a last 16 meeting against Brazil’s Fluminense next Monday.
Mexico’s Monterrey, 4-0 winners over already-eliminated Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds, finished as runners-up in Group E and will face Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 on July 2.
River’s campaign ended in disarray, with defender Lucas Martinez Quarta sent off for denial of a goal-scoring opportunity in the 66th minute.
TWO screamers from 35+ yards in 10 mins | 00:43
Argentina international Gonzalo Montiel then followed his team-mate off the field in injury time after picking up a second yellow card Inter and River Plate had gone into the game with the Group E standings on a knife edge.
But after Monterrey swept into an early 3-0 lead against Urawa in Pasadena, the stakes soon became clear in Seattle, where the winner would advance provided the result in California held.
After a scrappy first half, Inter began to get on top in the second half against a River side who struggled to create much of note in the final third.
Inter striker Lautaro Martinez squandered a golden chance in the 55th minute, shooting straight at Armani after cutting side.
The game tilted decisively in Inter’s favour in the 65th minute when Martinez Quarta was dismissed for bringing down Henrikh Mkhitaryan as the former Manchester United player went down on goal.
The game opened up for Inter after that, Esposito giving the Italians the lead seven minutes later before Bastoni sealed it.
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Bellingham assists Dortmund to top group | 03:58
Earlier, a solitary first-half goal by Daniel Svensson gave Borussia Dortmund a 1-0 win against Ulsan HD as the Germans secured a place in the last 16.
Dortmund’s second straight victory by a one-goal margin, following their 4-3 defeat of Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday, was watched by only just over 8,000 spectators in Cincinnati, among them US Vice President JD Vance and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino.
It means Dortmund qualify for the last 16 as winners of Group F, while Fluminense go through behind them in second after holding off Sundowns in a goalless stalemate played at the same time in Miami.
“We can be satisfied. I think our performance was better than in the first two matches,” said Dortmund coach Niko Kovac.
He has spoken regularly at the tournament about the difficulties posed by the searing June heat in the United States, and this was another game played in sweltering mid-afternoon conditions.
“We keep saying the same thing. What the boys are doing is incredible. Thirty-six degrees Celsius (96.8 degrees Fahrenheit) and 43 degrees in the stadium. This is incredible,” Kovac said.
“Even if you just stand around it can get very taxing but I think they are doing a great job. Now we have a day off and I hope the players recover for the next match.”
Fluminense, Sundowns play tense decider | 03:42
Ulsan go home with three defeats from three games, while Fluminense are through, meaning all four Brazilian teams in the competition have progressed to the knockout phase.
Conditions were also tough in Miami, where captain Jhon Arias flashed a shot across the face of goal and wide for Fluminense late in the first half.
German Cano came close for the Rio de Janeiro side after the break, while Sundowns enjoyed more of the possession over the 90 minutes but could not get the win they needed to progress in front of a crowd of 14,312.
Their exit means none of the four African clubs who came to the tournament will feature in the last 16, but Sundowns’ performances mean they can go home with their heads held high.
“We are not happy. We had a clear objective in this match, but I am very proud of the level the players performed at,” said the South African champions’ coach, Miguel Cardoso.
“We leave and go home with our heads up because we are much stronger than we were when we came here.”