Thiago Silva plays through pain barrier as Fluminense upset Inter

Fluminense captain Thiago Silva played through the pain barrier to lead his team to the most eye-catching result of the Club World Cup to date, as they dumped Inter out in the last 16 with a 2-0 win.

Inter went into Monday's round-of-16 matchup in Charlotte as overwhelming favourites to reach the quarter-finals. 

Ahead of the last 16, the Opta supercomputer gave Inter the highest probability of reaching the quarter-finals, at 84.4%, with Fluminense's 15.6% chance the lowest of any club.

However, the Champions League runners-up were stunned in stifling heat at Bank of America Stadium, with German Cano stooping to head Jhon Arias' deflected cross from the right past Yann Sommer early on.

The 2023 Copa Libertadores victors should have doubled their lead when Samuel Xavier steered wide of the bottom-left corner, while centre-back Ignacio had a close-range header disallowed for offside. 

Inter continued to toil after half-time, and Fluminense got a clinching goal in stoppage time, with Hercules slotting into the bottom-right corner from the edge of the box.

Silva, formerly of AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, made eight clearances, the joint-most on the pitch alongside Ignacio, while only Facundo Bernal and Ignacio bettered his two interceptions.

"I am very proud of my team-mates," the 40-year-old told DAZN. "It is so hard to play against Inter, they played the Champions League final only a month ago. 

"It was not easy to play, it was so hot today... too hot to play football. The timing was not good but Fluminense is a big team. 

"We played very well. To win 2-0 against Inter is not easy. Only 10 days ago, I had a hamstring issue so it was not easy to play today, but I am very proud of our medical team."

Despite having less possession than Inter (32% to 68%), Fluminense had the same number of shots on target (four) and big chances (two), while accumulating more expected goals (1.15 xG to 1.13).

Fluminense have now kept five clean sheets in their last six matches, recording shutouts against Borussia Dortmund, Mamelodi Sundowns and Inter at the Club World Cup.

They are the second Brazilian club to reach the last eight, after Palmeiras overcame Botafogo in the round of 16. Brazilian sides have a strong record in matches against European clubs at the 2025 Club World Cup, winning three and losing two (also two draws).

New Inter coach Cristian Chivu told DAZN: "We tried until the end, despite some changes to the formation. We tried to do our best but it wasn't the day for us. 

"They were well-organised with a low block and it was hard for us to find solutions. In the second half, we switched it a bit more, we put in more crosses, we tried until the end."

Fluminense will now face the victor of Manchester City's round-of-16 tie against Al-Hilal for a place in the semi-finals.