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Journalism of Courage
Lautaro Martinez, the Argentine and Inter-Milan footballer, believes he is “underestimated” when it comes to being in reckoning for Ballon d’Or and reckons it might be due to “image and marketing”.
In a frank chat with France Football, Martinez has opened up on a host of subjects. But first the perception of him in the wider football world.
“Maybe it’s a question of image, of marketing, which doesn’t take me where I deserve. But I always give my all for my teammates, for my shirt. That’s what matters. I try to achieve my goals to be at peace with myself. At 28, I’m very happy with my career. I aspire to be more recognized. But above all, I’d like to be recognized as a good, polite person who has always behaved correctly.”
When asked where he ranks among the top five strikers in the world, Lautaro responded: “In the top five. I don’t want to name names. Everyone ranks players as they want. There are some top-class strikers. But what I’ve done in recent years allows me to be in the top five.”
He also spoke about his seventh-place finish in the 2024 Ballon d’Or awards rankings. “I expected to finish higher. I respect the judges’ decision; they asked me what I thought, and I said so. That’s just how I am; I’ve never been in the thick of things … I don’t know what place I can claim, but I felt very comfortable. And even though we didn’t win titles, I had a great season. I deserve a good position.”
Moving on to lighter subjects, he spoke about how he always sets his alarm the same every day. “I always set my alarm for the same time, 8:01. It’s part of those strange rituals that allow me to be at peace with myself.”
He also talked about the origin of his nickname the Bull (Il Toro) and his tattoos.
”They call me the Bull (Il Toro) after a former teammate from the Racing youth team. I had a lot of strength, a desire to run, and I kicked hard. He always said I was a bull. It’s an animal that represents me well. In Buenos Aires, I had one tattooed on my wrist. Other tattoos? I don’t know, I’ll think about it. I also want to finish my right arm. At a certain point, I wanted to get a tattoo of the World Cup, the Copa America, and the titles with Inter. But I didn’t because, if I win all the titles I dream of winning, it will be difficult to put everything into it. Maybe I’ll choose the date of the World Cup success (December 18, 2022). The same goes for the Champions League. One day, maybe…”
He was part of the Inter-Milan team that went down 0-5 to PSG in the final and that loss, he says, caused him the “deepest pain” he has ever felt.
“We’ve played two Champions League finals in three years. We’ve always had a great run, but we’ve always lacked that little something extra in the final match. The one against PSG was very hard on me, I struggled to accept it, we were prepared and confident. Nothing went as hoped, the pain was even greater. These are scars that need to heal. We felt helpless. We weren’t able to put into practice what we had planned. And it made us angry. It was their day, they deserved it. I congratulate Hakimi and Donnarumma.”
He says he struggled for days after the final. “Bad, bad, bad. There was a week where the pain was excruciating, hard to stomach. Afterward, there’s no time to complain; you have to start over and continue, turn the page, keep the good things, improve them. For five days after the final, I didn’t speak to anyone. I wanted to talk to the people, to my teammates, but I couldn’t. Nothing came out. I was stuck. I was a little anxious and sad because it was a hard blow. We had the chance to win three titles and in the end, we find ourselves like this, with nothing. It’s the deepest pain I’ve ever felt,” he told France Football.
