Lautaro Martínez facts for kids
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Martínez playing for Inter Milan in 2020
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Lautaro Javier Martínez | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 22 August 1997 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Bahía Blanca, Argentina | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Inter Milan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2014 | Liniers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Racing Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | Racing Club | 48 | (22) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018– | Inter Milan | 224 | (111) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Argentina U20 | 11 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018– | Argentina | 70 | (32) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:24, 19 January 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024 |
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Lautaro Javier Martínez (born August 22, 1997), often called Lautaro, is a professional footballer from Argentina. He plays as a striker for the Italian club Inter Milan, where he is the captain. He also plays for the Argentina national team. Many people think he is one of the best strikers in the world. He is known for scoring many goals, working well with his teammates, and finding good positions in the penalty box.
Lautaro started his career in Argentina with Racing Club in 2015. He played there for four seasons, scoring 28 goals in 60 games. In 2018, he moved to Inter Milan. With Inter, he has won two league titles, including the most recent one where he was named the Serie A Most Valuable Player and the league's top scorer. He also won two Coppa Italia titles with Inter and reached the finals of the 2020 UEFA Europa League and the 2023 UEFA Champions League.
Martínez has played for Argentina at different youth levels. He made his debut for the senior national team in 2018. He helped Argentina win the 2021 Copa América and the 2024 Copa América. In the 2024 tournament, he was the top scorer with five goals, including one in the final. He was also part of the Argentina team that won the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Contents
Lautaro's Club Journey
Starting His Football Career
Lautaro Martínez was born in Bahía Blanca, Argentina. He followed his father's path into football, joining a local team called Liniers. He was very good at the Under-17 level. In 2013, he scored 13 goals in the U-17 league.
Playing for Racing Club
Lautaro's great performance caught the eye of Racing Club. They signed him in January 2014. At first, he missed his hometown, but his teammate Braian Mansilla convinced him to stay. He then scored 53 goals in 64 games for Racing's reserve team.
In 2015, Real Madrid wanted to sign him, but Lautaro chose to stay in Argentina. His father said he wasn't ready to leave Racing yet. Lautaro made his first league appearance on November 1, 2015. He came on as a substitute for Diego Milito in a 3-0 win.
He scored his first goal for Racing in November 2016. For the 2016–17 season, he became a key player, scoring 9 goals in 23 league games. In December 2017, he was linked with La Liga club Atlético Madrid. However, Racing announced he had signed a new contract with them. He finished that year with a great performance, scoring and assisting in a 3-1 win.
On February 27, he scored his second hat-trick of the season in his Copa Libertadores debut against Cruzeiro. Racing won that game 4-2. In May, Racing Club's president confirmed that Lautaro would join Italian club Inter Milan.
Joining Inter Milan
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Lautaro officially joined Inter Milan on July 4, 2018. He signed a five-year contract. He scored in his first friendly match for Inter. His first official game was on August 19, 2018, in a league match against Sassuolo. He scored his first league goal against Cagliari on September 29.
On February 14, 2019, Lautaro scored his first European goal in the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League against Rapid Wien. After this, he started playing in almost every match. In his first game against city rivals Milan, he assisted a goal and then scored a penalty. Inter won that match 3-2.
On October 2, 2019, Lautaro scored his first UEFA Champions League goal against Barcelona. He became the first Inter player since 1970 to score at Camp Nou. Later, he scored two goals against Slavia Prague. This made him only the fourth Inter player and fifth Argentinian player to score in four Champions League games in a row.
On August 17, 2020, Lautaro scored two goals in a 5-0 win against Shakhtar Donetsk. This helped Inter reach the 2020 UEFA Europa League Final. On May 16, 2023, he scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over rivals Milan in the Champions League semi-final. This win sent Inter to the Champions League Final for the first time since 2010. On May 24, he scored two goals to help Inter win their second straight Coppa Italia.
Lautaro started the 2023–24 season as Inter's main striker. He scored both goals in a 2-0 win against Monza in the first game. On September 30, 2023, he made history by scoring 4 goals as a substitute against Salernitana. This was a first in Serie A.
On February 25, 2024, Lautaro scored twice against Lecce. His first goal was his 100th in Serie A. He finished the 2023–24 season as the capocannoniere (top scorer) with 24 goals. He was also named the Serie A Most Valuable Player for the season.
Lautaro's International Career
Playing for Youth Teams
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In 2017, Lautaro played for the Argentina U20 team in the 2017 South American U-20 Championship. He was one of the top scorers with five goals. This helped Argentina qualify for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
During the World Cup, he was sent off in Argentina's first match against England after a video review. This was the first time a player was dismissed using video technology. Later, he scored two goals in a 5-0 win against Guinea.
Playing for the Senior Team
On March 12, 2018, Lautaro was called up to the senior team for the first time. He made his debut on March 27 against Spain. In May 2018, he was part of the first squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup but wasn't in the final team. Later that year, he scored his first goal for Argentina in a 4-0 friendly win against Iraq.
In May 2019, Lautaro was chosen for Argentina's squad for the 2019 Copa América. He scored the first goal in a 2-0 win against Qatar, which helped Argentina move to the next stage. He also scored against Venezuela in the quarter-finals and was named Man of the match.
On September 10, 2019, Lautaro scored his first international hat-trick in a friendly match against Mexico. Argentina won 4-0.
He played a big part in Argentina winning the 2021 Copa América. He scored against Bolivia, Ecuador, and Colombia. He also scored in the penalty shootout against Colombia to help Argentina reach the final.
On June 1, 2022, Lautaro scored and assisted a goal in a 3-0 win over Italy in the 2022 Finalissima at Wembley Stadium.
Lautaro was part of the Argentina squad that won the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Even though he had an ankle injury, he played in the first two games. He later came off the bench in other matches. In the quarter-final against the Netherlands, he scored the winning penalty in a shootout. On December 18, he came on in the final against France. Argentina won the World Cup after a penalty shootout.
At the 2024 Copa América, Lautaro scored Argentina's second goal in their opening 2-0 win against Canada. He then scored the only goal in a win against Chile. He scored two more goals against Peru. In the final against Colombia, Lautaro scored the winning goal in extra time. With 5 goals, he won the Golden Boot as the tournament's top scorer.
Lautaro's Style of Play
Lautaro Martínez started as a defender when he was young, but then switched to being a forward. He is a fast and agile player. He is known for his dribbling skills, scoring many goals, and finding good positions in the penalty box. Even though he isn't super tall, he is strong and good at heading the ball.
He is also good at linking up with teammates and helping out with defense. He can assist goals as well as score them. Because of this, he can play as a second striker too. His leadership and desire to win have earned him the nickname El Toro ("The Bull" in Spanish). Many experts see him as one of the best young players and strikers of his generation.
Personal Life
Since 2016, Lautaro Martínez has been in a relationship with Agustina Gandolfo. She is an entrepreneur and fitness trainer from Argentina. They got married on May 27, 2023, in Italy. They have two children: their daughter Nina was born on February 1, 2021, and their son Theo was born on August 7, 2023.
Honours
Inter Milan
- Serie A: 2020–21, 2023–24
- Coppa Italia: 2021–22, 2022–23
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2021, 2022, 2023
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2022–23
- UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2019–20
Argentina
- FIFA World Cup: 2022
- Copa América: 2021, 2024
- CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions: 2022
Individual Awards
- Copa América Golden Boot: 2024
- Copa América Team of the Tournament: 2024
- Argentine Primera División Breakthrough Player: 2017–18
- Argentine Primera División Team of the Year: 2017–18
- UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2019–20
- South American Youth Football Championship top scorer: 2017
- Gazzetta Sports Awards Performance of the Year: 2023
- Serie A Player of the Month: October 2023
- Serie A Most Valuable Player: 2023–24
- Capocannoniere: 2023–24
- Serie A Team of the Season: 2023–24
- ESM Team of the Year: 2023–24
- Golden Foot: 2024
- Serie A Team of the Year: 2023–24
- Serie A Footballer of the Year: 2024
Images for kids
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Martínez playing for Argentina U20
See also
In Spanish: Lautaro Martínez para niños
