Emiliano Martínez with another awesome heroic as Argentina knocked out relentless Netherlands out of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar via penalty shootouts.
As Argentina and the Netherlands squared off in Lusail Stadium on Friday night, December 9, all lenses in Qatar were on Lionel Messi to prove his GOAT status.
The South American team is considered one of the favorites to win the World Cup Trophy even after their shocking loss to Saudi Arabia in their opening match.
But before they can win the trophy, they must defeat a powerful Dutch team that is well-organized and more than capable of competing with the best in the world.
Denzel Dumfries, Cody Gakpo, Memphis Depay, Steven Bergwijn, Andries Noppert, Nathan Ake, Virgil van Dijk, Jurrien Timber, Daley Blind, Frenkie de Jong, Marten de Roon, were initial starters for the Netherlands.
Whereas Argentina began with Emiliano Martínez, Marcos Acuna, Lisandro Martinez, Nicolas Otamendi, Cristian Romero, Nahuel Molina, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, Rodrigo De Paul, Lionel Messi, and Julian Alvarez.
At the World Cup, the Netherlands have already defeated the winners of CONCACAF (USA), Asia (Qatar), and Africa (Senegal).
However, at the Lusail Iconic Stadium, the Dutch were significantly outnumbered. The Oranje supporters believed their squad was capable of competing with any foe, hence, they kept faith with the team even when things were not going their way.
Lionel Messi was once again the sole beneficiary of Argentina’s ambitions after scoring in a World Cup knockout game for the first time.
The talismanic number 10 has been in fantastic form, scoring three goals thus far.
As for the Netherlands, Cody Gakpo was the Dutch team’s game changer. His three goals helped the Netherlands get out of the group round. Against the USA, Memphis Depay, Daley Blind, and Denzel Dumfries all contributed to the victory, negating the need for his talents.
The players were prepared for this quarterfinal because they had already been put through their paces.
In the quarter-final clash, Argentina chose to start with a defensively biased 3-5-2 configuration, whereas Netherlands decided to go with a 3-4-1-2 system.
At the Lusail Iconic Stadium, the Netherlands opened the proceedings.
They wore their vibrant orange uniform, while Argentina put on their standard blue and white attire.
Both teams appeared to be in good spirits, as you would expect in such a crucial game, but they didn’t take any unnecessary risk at the start of the game.
In the ninth minute, the Netherlands had a 53 percent possession, but that changed as the game progressed.
In the 33rd minute, referee Antonio Miguel Mateu showed a yellow card to Argentina’s assistant coach Walter Samuel.
Afterward, Molina made a fantastic effort to start the scoring for Argentina.
The magician, Lionel Messi, struck once more, darting in from the right side and spotting Molina making a run towards the box through an enormous space between the Dutch bodies.
It was caught by Molina, who then slid it past the goalkeeper to give Argentina the lead.
The referee ends the first half of play after a fairly bizarre 45 minutes of play.
The Netherlands made two substitutions: Teun Koopmeiners replaced Marten de Roon, and Steven Bergwijn replaced Steven Berguis.
Acuna was pulled down by Dumfries right inside the box on the left side, and it was a crucial moment in the game.
The No. 10 played it cool as you like, calmly slotting it in to the left of the keeper to electrify Lusail Iconic Stadium.
Messi performed admirably both times, once against the Dutch and once against Australia.
The goal from the spot marked Messi’s 10th World Cup goal which ties him with Gabriel Batistuta, Argentina’s all-time leading scorer.
In the 82nd minute of the game, the Dutch team scores to give themselves a chance.
Weghorst entered the game immediately after Emiliano Martínez was defeated by his header to make it 2-1.
Weghorst puts the Netherlands up 2-2 as Argentina was entirely unprepared.
Weghorst pushed the ball past Emiliano Martínez after Koopmeiners rolled it beneath the Argentina wall.
What a comeback right off the training field!
Everyone in the stadium anticipated the free kick to be shot at goal, therefore the Dutch substitute saved the day.
The wall rises up in anticipation of the shot, but the ball was put well along the ground.
Weghorst received the ball, turned, and fired instinctively toward goal, passing Martinez’s left without any chance of stopping it.
As the game ended in a draw after regular time, it was an amazing conclusion.
The former Burnley striker forced extra time by tucking a shot home in the penultimate second of extra time after a brilliant free-kick routine that Argentina could not manage.
However, goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez pulled off two penalty saves to advance Argentina into the semifinals and ended Netherlands good run in the tournament.
Instead of their longtime rivals Brazil, they will now play Croatia who pulled off another surprise in the day’s first game to advance via a shootout as well.
