Inter Milan secured their place in the last 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup with a tense 2-0 victory over Argentine giants River Plate in a fiery encounter at Lumen Field, Seattle.
The match, which was marred by multiple red cards and unsportsmanlike scenes, saw River Plate finish with nine men and exit the tournament after failing to advance from Group E. Inter’s progression came courtesy of second-half goals from 19-year-old Francesco Esposito and defender Alessandro Bastoni.
Tensions boiled over in the closing moments of the game when River Plate’s Marcos Acuña had to be physically restrained by teammates and staff — including captain Franco Armani and Inter manager Cristian Chivu — as he angrily pursued Inter’s Denzel Dumfries off the pitch. Objects were hurled from the stands as Dumfries was escorted down the tunnel, underscoring the charged atmosphere.
Earlier, a tackle by Acuña on Dumfries sparked a melee involving players from both sides, leading to River’s Gonzalo Montiel receiving a second yellow card and being sent off. That came after Lucas Martínez Quarta was shown a straight red in the 66th minute for denying Inter’s Henrikh Mkhitaryan a clear goalscoring chance.
With River reduced to nine men, Inter took control. Esposito opened the scoring with his first goal for the club, while Bastoni sealed the result with a stoppage-time strike.
Speaking after the match, Inter manager Cristian Chivu acknowledged the intensity of the contest. “The game was very tough for us in the first half,” he said. “River had a lot of aggression, a lot of intensity. In the second half, we controlled the game a little bit better and after the red card, it was much easier for us. We have the job done. We qualify for the further stage of this competition. We are pleased with that.”
With the win, Inter advance to face Brazilian side Fluminense in the round of 16 on Monday at 20:00 BST.
Elsewhere in Group E, Mexican side Monterrey progressed after a commanding 4-0 win over Urawa Red Diamonds. They finished second in the group with five points—one ahead of River Plate—and will now face German club Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.