Was this a deliberate reference from Lionel Messi to fellow Argentina hero, Juan Roman Riquelme? Possibly.
The Albaceleste skipper was the difference maker for his side within the 90 minutes and managed to slot his penalty home in the shootout – and during the match, he celebrated his first penalty in Riquelme-esque style, holding his hands to his ears.
Some on social media noticed the likeness…
Leo Messi celebrates Riquelme style 🤍💙 pic.twitter.com/WpJ2gfWpAADecember 9, 2022
What finished with fireworks at the end of regulation time started off particularly sluggishly. Both sides seemed cautious to work each other out with the first shot on target coming after half an hour – but when the breakthrough came, it had to be the man himself who was the mastermind behind it.
Lionel Messi didn’t score Argentina’s opener but after separating himself from Nathan Ake, he managed to slide an impossible no-look pass through the Dutch backline and onto the on-rushing Nahuel Molina to convert. The best assist of the World Cup so far? Quite probably.
Sure enough, the little genius wanted a piece of the action for himself. Messi was on hand to convert a penalty after 70 minutes when Denzel Dumfries was deemed to have fouled Marcos Acuna, calmly thwacking the ball past Andries Noppert – and it looked like the Albaceleste were marching towards the semi-final of the World Cup once more without breaking too much of a sweat.
But the Dutch weren’t going to take it lying down – not least when Virgil van Dijk clattered into Argentine midfielder Leandro Parades in comedic fashion. Referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz dished out over a dozen bookings – angering former Argentina man Sergio Aguero watching on – while former Burnley man Wout Weghorst was brought onto change the tide and managed to pull one back. 100 minutes into the game, the lanky hitman was the difference-maker, executing an outrageously cheeky free-kick routine which saw the Oranje nick an equaliser.
The winner of this one faces Croatia in the semi-final next week.
