Argentina stormed into the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 with a thrilling win over Netherlands via penalty shootout late on Friday night. With the heroics of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, the South American team saved two goals in the penalty shootout and won after being levelled at 2-2 in extra time. Dutch striker Wout Weghorst scored two goals while Nahuel Molina and Lionel Messi were the goal-scorers for Argentina.
With the semi-final spot at stake, the match was played neck-to-neck and 14 yellow cards were shown in the match by the referee. There were multiple fights that broke out between the two sides, none biggger than the one in the 89th minute when the Netherlands dugout charged onto the pitch.
Argentina players were seen mocking the shattered Netherlands footballers after the winning penalty, angering Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries. He was given the red card after an angry outburst.
After all this, Argentina captain Messi lashed out at referee Mateu Lahoz after the match was over. The star footballer said that the referee failed to do his job properly in a very important match and urged FIFA to take action.
“I don’t want to speak about referees because after they will sanction you. But people saw what happened. I think FIFA must take care of this. It cannot put a referee like that for a match of such magnitude, of such importance. The referee cannot fail to be up to the task,” Messi said after the match.
Elaborating further, the Argentina striker reflected on the team’s performance. He highlighted how Argentina was leading by 2-0 till much of the second half and then conceded two goals to take the match to extra time which then went into penalty kicks.
“A lot of joy and relief. It wasn’t to go to penalty kicks. We suffered too much for how it all happened. But it’s the quarter-finals of the World Cup. Going through is the most beautiful and impressive thing. Argentina is among the top four, because we show game after game that we know how to play each game with the same intensity, with the same will,” said Messi.
Argentina will now face off against Croatia in the semifinal on Wednesday, December 14.