Inter Milan were held to a 1-1 draw by Monterrey in their opening match of the FIFA Club World Cup on Tuesday night, marking their first competitive outing since their Champions League final loss.
Spanish veteran Sergio Ramos opened the scoring with a spectacular first-half header, energizing a largely pro-Mexican crowd in Southern California. It was also a successful debut for Monterrey’s head coach, Domènec Torrent.
Lautaro Martínez responded for Inter in the 42nd minute, tapping in a well worked set-piece move finished off by Carlos Augusto’s assist. Despite dominating possession with nearly 62%, Inter couldn’t find a winner, while Monterrey managed just one shot on target.
It was the managerial debut for Cristian Chivu, who fielded only seven players from Simone Inzaghi’s Champions League final squad. Striker Marcus Thuram, recovering from injury, came on early in the second half to replace 22-year-old Sebastiano Esposito, making his first appearance for Inter since 2020 after seven loan spells.
Ramos, who was named MVP of the match, acknowledged the challenge of playing against a Champions League finalist. It was a tough game against a top opponent. You’re never fully satisfied without a win. he told DAZN.
Martínez thought he had scored again in the 68th minute, but his effort was ruled out for offside. Both sides had chances in the final moments, and Martínez received a yellow card in stoppage time.
Looking ahead, Ramos said, We have to move on from this point and focus on our next match against River Plate. It’s crucial we get three points. River are a determined team that fights to the last minute, it’s in their DNA. We’ll give everything to come away with a good result.
River Plate start CWC with win over Urawa Red Diamonds

In the day’s earlier match, River Plate kicked off their Club World Cup campaign with a commanding 3-1 win over Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds.
Facundo Colidio opened the scoring in the 12th minute, heading in a pinpoint cross from Marcos Acuña. It was important to start strong. We knew it would be a tough game, Colidio said.
Despite Urawa threatening before the break including a disallowed goal by Marius Hoibraten and a sharp effort from Takuro Kaneko River maintained their edge.
Sebastián Driussi doubled River’s lead early in the second half, intercepting a poor back-header from Hoibraten and lofting the ball over goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa. Driussi was later forced off with an injury.
Urawa narrowed the gap in the 58th minute through Yusuke Matsuo’s penalty, awarded after a foul by Acuña. But substitute Maxi Meza sealed the win for River with a 73rd-minute header from another Acuña assist, his second of the night.
I’m pleased with our start, River coach Marcelo Gallardo said. There were nerves, but the goals gave us composure. We know we can still improve moving forward.
River Plate will face Monterrey in their next Group E fixture on Saturday, while Urawa Red Diamonds take on Inter Milan.
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