Inter Milan has been eliminated from the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. While losing 2-0 to Fluminense in the round of 16 was a disappointing end to the summer tournament, this early exit grants the Italian club a much-needed respite after what became an exceptionally long 2024-25 season. The final weeks of this challenging season brought several setbacks. It feels like a distant memory when Inter secured a thrilling 4-3 victory over Barcelona in the Champions League semifinal second leg. Since that peak, the Nerazzurri saw Napoli claim their 4th Scudetto, lost the UEFA Champions League final decisively with a 5-0 scoreline against PSG, and underwent a significant managerial change. Former coach Simone Inzaghi departed after four years, and Inter appointed club legend and 2010 Champions League winner Cristian Chivu.
Chivu`s appointment was surprising and raised questions among many, but Inter sought a young coach capable of nurturing young talent, particularly one familiar with the club`s youth system, where Chivu coached from 2018 to 2024. His senior coaching experience was limited to just 13 Serie A matches at Parma (three wins, seven draws, three defeats) before taking the Inter job. It`s clear Inter took a calculated risk, prioritizing a manager focused on player development. This strategy is reinforced by their recent signings of young players like Croatian midfielder Petar Sucic, Brazilian winger Luis Henrique, and French striker Ange-Yoan Bonny from Parma. Additionally, the club brought back promising loan players, including Italian wonderkid Francesco Pio Esposito, who had already impressed at the World Cup and scored the winning goal against River Plate in the group stage.
Some players are definitely expected to leave Inter; rumors of midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu potentially moving to Galatasaray are persistent. As the team embarks on this new chapter under Chivu, a break is essential. The four matches played in the Club World Cup highlighted the team`s mental exhaustion. The disappointments in the Champions League and Serie A had clearly taken a toll, and the performances in the tournament demonstrated the squad`s need for time off to reset and prepare for the next season with fresh ideas, potentially new players, and a new tactical approach under the new management.
While the Club World Cup offered some early opportunities for the team to work with the new coaching staff, captain Lautaro Martinez`s candid remarks to DAZN after the Fluminense defeat strongly suggest changes are needed this summer: “The message must be clear, those who want to stay should stay, those who don`t want to stay should leave. I want to fight for important goals. This is an important jersey, and that must be the message.” These words seem directed not just externally but also towards the dressing room itself, emphasizing the required level of commitment.
It was a difficult end to the season for both the team and its supporters, and it`s currently hard to predict the full impact of the 2024-25 season`s conclusion on the upcoming 2025-26 campaign. Players require rest and time off now, but Lautaro`s statement sounds like a clear challenge to some teammates who might be considering a move after several years at the club. Whoever returns after the break must work significantly harder to transform a disappointing season into a new era of success for the club, as the events of the past few weeks will be challenging for everyone associated with Inter to overcome.
Adrian Whitmore 
Benedict Kingsley