Inter Milan booked their place in the FIFA Club World Cup knockout stage with a clinical late surge, eliminating South American giants River Plate in a dramatic group-stage clash.

Both teams entered the match knowing the stakes — a win guaranteed progress, while anything less spelled danger, especially for the Argentine side. For River Plate, the margin for error was razor-thin, and as it turned out, even a draw wouldn’t have been enough.

The match remained tense and balanced until the closing stages, when Inter stepped up and delivered a ruthless double blow. Two goals in quick succession shattered River’s hopes, sending the Buenos Aires outfit packing and propelling the Italian champions into the next round.

2025 FIFA Club World Cup

Inter Milan - River Plate 2:0 (0:0)
Goals: Pio Esposito, 72 (1:0); Bastoni, 90 (2:0)

Inter Milan: Sommer; Dumfries; Acerbi; Dimarco (Carlos Augusto, 62); Darmian (de Vrij, 82); Bastoni; Mkhitaryan; Asllani K.; Barella (Sučić P., 62); Martínez L. (Carboni V., 73); Pio Esposito (Esposito Se., 82)
Bench: Di Gennaro; Martínez J-p; Calligaris; Palacios T.; Cocchi; De Pieri; Berenbruch; Zalewski; Luis Henrique T.L.
Yellow Cards: Bastoni 30; Carlos Augusto 77; Esposito Se. 85; Dumfries 90

River Plate: Armani; Montiel (till 90); Díaz P.; Kranevitter (Lanzini, 61); Meza (Fernández I., 55); Acuña; Martinez Quarta (till 65); Aliendro; Mastantuono; Borja M.; Colidio (Pezzella G., 68)
Bench: Ledesma J.; Gattoni; González Pírez; Bustos; Casco; Rojas Ma.; Martínez G.; Tapia; Subiabre
Yellow Cards: Montiel 22, 90; Lanzini 77; Díaz P. 88
Red cards: Martinez Quarta 65', Montiel 90'