Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram have become the “perfect strike partnership” for Inter Milan, making Romelu Lukaku a distant memory.
This is the view in today’s print edition of Rome-based newspaper Corriere dello Sport, via FCInterNews.
At 26 years old, Inter captain Martinez has already formed a few different strike partnerships.
The Argentine arrived whilst Mauro Icardi was still at the club, though the two Albiceleste strikers rarely played together.
It was in Martinez’s second season at Inter that he found a perfect foil.
Lukaku made the big money move from Manchester United.
The Belgian made an instant impact in an Inter shirt. And a big part of the reason why was the partnership that he formed with Martinez.
The two strikers certainly got the best out of each other.
Then, after two seasons playing together with Lukaku, the Belgian’s departure gave Martinez a new partner in crime.
Edin Dzeko arrived from Roma. And the Bosnian certainly has a different profile than Lukaku.
But in any event, the pair learned to play together and formed a formidable tandem.
Lautaro & Thuram Make Inter Forget All About Thuram
Last season, Lukaku’s temporary return to Inter on loan meant that Martinez had both he and Dzeko as strike partners, depending on who coach Simone Inzaghi selected.
Some injury issues meant that Lukaku often didn’t play.
Therefore, when the Chelsea-owned striker was out, it was Dzeko who was Martinez’s main foil.
But there were certainly some signs that the partnership between Martinez and Lukaku could take flight again.
But it all proved to be moot. Dzeko left Inter to join Fenerbahce during the summer. And Lukaku departed the Nerazzurri in a high-profile soap opera.
So it’s been Thuram who has taken up the mantle from those other strikers.
But it has turned out that the Frenchman is perhaps the most perfectly-suited strike partner that Martinez has had yet.
The two are leading Inter to a more prolific attack than ever.
Therefore, there is little sense of Lukaku being missed.
