Lionel Messi converted his penalty in the shootout while Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez saved two Netherlands attempts. Lautaro Martinez scored the decisive penalty for Argentina. The match was tied 2-2 in extra time, after which they resorted to a penalty shootout. Messi scored one goal in the match while assisting one before. The Netherlands pulled the match to extra time by scoring a goal in the 11th minute of injury time of the second half. Argentina will face Croatia in the semi-finals on Tuesday, having beaten Brazil 4-2 on penalties in another quarter-final.
How desperate Messi was to win the match can be gauged from his aggressive attitude. He was seen getting angry at his rival players and even he did not spare the referee. Messi’s immense collection of achievements does not include the World Cup trophy. When Lautaro Martínez scored the decisive goal in the penalty shoot-out, Messi did not run toward the striker and sprinted past the goalkeeper in his arms.
Messi said of the match, “We were harmed but in the end, we were able to move on.” There is a record. Netherlands defender Denzel Dumfries received two yellow cards and was sent off. Messi also got a yellow card.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni described the match as “ugly” while Messi criticized Spain’s referee Antonio Mateu. He said, “I don’t think his work meets the criteria. He should be harmful for us. ”””’ Messi’s attitude is rarely seen. He was also seen on the field after the match, shouting at Wout Weghorst, who scored two goals for the Netherlands.
Messi and his teammates celebrated on the field for 20 minutes after the end of the game. Messi said that the late Diego Maradona is watching him. Messi said about former Argentina captain and coach Maradona, “He is watching us from heaven. He is encouraging us. Hopefully, it will remain like this till the end. ”Maradona died two years ago.
This is only the second time since 1990 that Argentina has managed to make it to the last four of the World Cup. In 2014, Messi was part of the team that lost to Germany in the final. Messi presented an amazing piece of his skill in the 35th minute of the game and scored for Nahuel Molina and then converted the penalty in the 73rd minute to give Argentina a 2-0 lead. This was his fourth goal in the current World Cup.
Messi has scored a total of 10 goals in all World Cups and has equaled Gabriel Batistuta’s Argentine record. Come in the name of Messi, 94 goals have been registered in 169 international matches.
