SEATTLE (AP) — Francesco Pio Esposito scored in the 72nd minute and Alessandro Bastoni added an insurance goal in stoppage time to lead Inter Milan to a 2-0 win over River Plate on Wednesday night and into the second round of the Club World Cup.
Esposito’s goal came just six minutes after River Plate’s Lucas Martínez Quarta was shown a red card after taking out the legs of Henrikh Mkhitaryan on a breakaway and preventing a clean shot on goal.
Just two minutes before the red card, River Plate came close to taking the lead when Manuel Lanzini found Facundo Colidio in the box with a cross, but Inter Milan goalkeeper Yann Sommer made the save.
Bastoni's goal in front of more than 45,000 fans came on a left-footed shot from outside the box in the 93rd minute.
Inter Milan finished atop Group E with seven points, two more than Monterrey, which finished second in the group following a 4-0 victory over Urawa Red Diamonds on Wednesday night. River Plate finished in third with four points and Urawa Red Diamonds finished in last, going 0-3.
Esposito, a 19-year-old striker, notched his first career goal for Inter Milan after assisting on the squad’s winning goal in a 2-1 victory against Urawa Red Diamonds on Saturday.
Inter Milan plays Fluminense — one of four Brazilian clubs to advance to the round of 16 — on Monday in Charlotte, North Carolina. Monterrey plays Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday 1 at Atlanta.
“Well, it was a very intense game. Very well balanced, especially in the half time, but then we were playing better. For sure it was a great team, great fans and I respect all of them,” Esposito through a translator.
“I’m happy because he played a great game and joined a very difficult and real game and was up to the challenge,” Inter Milan manager Cristian Chivu said through a translator.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Referee lgiz Tantashev gestures to Inter Milan's Matteo Darmian as he leaves the field injured during the Club World Cup Group E soccer match between Inter Milan and River Plate in Seattle, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Inter Milan's Francesco Pio Esposito, right, celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Club World Cup Group E soccer match between Inter Milan and River Plate in Seattle, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Inter Milan's Francesco Pio Esposito, right, celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Club World Cup Group E soccer match between Inter Milan and River Plate in Seattle, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 40 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds, Christian Braun added 21 points and the Denver Nuggets beat San Antonio 136-134 in overtime Saturday to snap the Spurs’ 11-game winning streak.
Cameron Johnson scored 17, Jamal Murray finished with 15 points and 10 assists and Aaron Gordon scored 15 for the Nuggets.
Gordon scored with 6.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game, then forced Victor Wembanyama into a miss on the final shot of regulation.
Wembanyama finished with 34 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists and five blocked shots for the Spurs, who lost for only the third time in their last 30 games.
Stephon Castle scored 20 points for San Antonio, while Devin Vassell and Julian Champagnie each scored 18 for the Spurs.
Castle’s three-point play midway through the second quarter put the Spurs up 57-44, that 13-point margin the biggest that they would hold all afternoon.
Wembanyama scored with 9:08 remaining to put San Antonio up 107-96. The Spurs were 48-2 this season in games where they held double-digit leads in the fourth quarter.
They’re 48-3 now — with two of those losses against the Nuggets, who rallied from a 13-point deficit in the fourth to beat San Antonio on March 12.
Denver held San Antonio to 33% shooting the rest of the way, outscoring the Spurs 40-27 in the final 14 minutes of the game including overtime.
Jokic had 16 of his points in those final 14 minutes, while Denver held Wembanyama to 1 for 4 shooting in that span.
Spurs: Host Philadelphia on Monday.
Nuggets: Host Portland on Monday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, left, drives the lane past San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle during overtime of an NBA basketball game Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, front, pursues a loose ball with Denver Nuggets guard Christian Braun in the second half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown reacts after getting hurt while driving to the basket in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown, left, reacts after being injured while driving past San Antonio Spurs forward Luke Kornet in the second half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, right, looks to pass the ball as Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon defends during overtime of an NBA basketball game Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
