It wasn`t just the French forward: Gaia Lucariello, the wife of former Inter coach Inzaghi, and the Austrian striker, Hakan`s best friend, also liked his post.
Sometimes a “like” carries more weight than the post itself. Inter Milan is still in Charlotte and will leave their Uptown hotel in a couple of hours, but phones and social media are buzzing. Just as the entire club had absorbed Hakan Calhanoglu`s message, a response to Lautaro Martinez`s post-match comments, Marcus Thuram`s “like” appeared under the Turk`s message. This isn`t just any player; he`s the other half of the “ThuLa” strike partnership and the Argentine`s attacking twin for the past two years.
The French player had been dealing with some physical discomfort at the end of the season, “helping” from the bench against Monterrey in the World Cup debut, then missing the subsequent two matches against Urawa and River Plate. Then, after two training sessions with the group here in North Carolina, he started alongside Lautaro with questionable results.
Marcus was far from his usual standards, weighed down physically and mentally by a draining season, and somewhat listless in a game against Fluminense that required grit to turn around – the exact opposite of the warrior Lautaro, who came close to scoring despite also not being at his best. And more importantly, sacred in Argentine football ethics, he dislikes teammates who don`t give their all, especially in knockout matches. Beyond the pitch and the loss to Flu, however, there is the rift that emerged in the last few hours between the team captain and the Turkish midfield leader, who were once on good terms. With a click, Marcus has taken a side between the two. Until proven otherwise or possibly denied, he has chosen where he stands. This is how communication works these days, and it holds enormous significance in Inter`s strange period, a club that has been without peace for weeks now.
The Rift
In his attack following the elimination (“Whoever wants to stay, should, but whoever doesn`t want to, should leave, goodbye…”), Lautaro hadn`t named names, but Calhanoglu immediately felt the heat in Istanbul. Especially because then, President Beppe Marotta directly called Hakan out: “He didn`t say it, but I`m saying it, the comment is directed at Calhanoglu. But we shouldn`t blame Hakan; we will talk to him. For now, there are no grounds to part ways, but if there are, we will do it without problems.”
The message from Turkey arrived a few hours later, sharp as a scimitar: “I respect every opinion, even that of a teammate, even that of the president. But respect cannot be one-sided. I have always shown it, on and off the field. I have never said I am not happy at Inter. I love this club. And I love these colours, for which I have given everything every day. The future? We will see. But history will always remember those who stood tall. Not those who raised their voices the loudest.” Below, in a flood of over 150,000 likes, was Marcus`s thumbs-up, making the management of the Inter dressing room even more complicated for Cristian Chivu, the man who must heal the wounds and traumas of the season`s end. Among other likes, Marko Arnautovic, Calha`s best friend in the last squad, who as of yesterday is no longer officially an Inter player, is noticeable. Plus, a very spicy one from Gaia Lucariello: she is Simone Inzaghi`s wife, in a teasing mood after her husband reached the World Cup quarter-finals.
