Lautaro Martinez: How Inter top scorer could play for 14 months straight

Inter captain and leading goalscorer Lautaro Martinez could be forced to play for 14 consecutive months if selected by Javier Mascherano to play for Argentina at the 2024 Olympic Games in France this summer.

Lautaro Martinez recently told Argentine network TyC Sports that he will ‘always’ be available to represent his country if called upon.

“If Mascherano wants to count on me, I always want to be available. I work hard to wear this shirt and being in the national team is a privilege.

“If Mascherano is listening, I confirm to him that I am available,” Lautaro Martinez said, reported via La Gazzetta dello Sport.

La Gazzetta report that Inter are not particularly keen on the idea of their star striker spending his pre-season away with the Olympic squad, as the tournament runs from July 24 to August 10. The Serie A season is then scheduled to begin a week later, on August 17.

Before then, though, Argentina and Lautaro Martinez are set to play in the 2024 Copa America, which begins in June and ends in July.

To make matters worse for Lautaro Martinez’s schedule, Inter have already booked their place in the 2025 Club World Cup, which will run from June to July next year.

That means that, if selected for the Olympic squad, Lautaro Martinez will have matches scheduled in 14 consecutive months, beginning in June 2024 and ending in July 2025.

That does not account for the beginning of the 2025-26 Serie A season, which will likely commence in August, the month directly after the end of the 2025 Club World Cup.