Lautaro Martinez scored a pivotal goal on Wednesday shortly after Bayern Munich got the lead, paving the way for the qualification to the Champions League semifinals. It's his 150th since joining the team. He entered a very select group of legends that comprises only Giuseppe Meazza, Istvan Nyers, Roberto Boninsegna, Alessandro Altobelli, and Sandro Mazzola, Tuttomercatoweb informs.
In addition, he became the first ever Nerazzurri player to hit the net in five consecutive Champions League matches. He has done it eight times total in the competition. He's reached Samuel Eto'o in the treble season in 2010/2011 and is one shy of the record set by Hernan Crespo in 2002/2003.
Lautaro Martinez was explicit in his post-game remarks.
“We'll remember this game for a long time. This team has big balls. We never give up: we have great personality, heart, and mentality. We suffered but proved once again that we can do great things.”
Coach Simone Inzaghi also achieved a rare feat in Inter's history. He's just the second coach to make it to the Champions League semifinals twice. Only Helenio Herrera had managed in 1963/1964 and 1996/1967. He commented after the tilt.
“These nights will stay with us. It was super difficult to play these two matches against Bayern Munich, which is a worthy opponent. This repays all the hard work of the players. You can't have this kind of performance if you don't have great men. I'm a very lucky coach.”
Led by Lautaro Martinez and Inzaghi. The Nerazzurri are set for their tenth participation in the penultimate stage of the top continental competition. They moved closer to Milan (13) and Juventus (12) as far as Serie A is concerned.