Argentina and Lionel Messi triumphed Argentina by winning over the Netherlands’ 4-3 aggregates on penalties in the quarter-final of the 2022 World Cup.
The dramatic match which ended up in victory for the Argentines sets them up in the semi-final against the already-qualified Croatia.
The Dutch missed their first two penalties in the shootout while Argentina were flawless until Enzo Fernández missed their fourth.
Lautaro Martinez converts from the spot to keep Argentina’s World Cup dreams alive.
The first half-hour of the game saw no goal until Lionel Messi puts a moment of magic together to threading-perfected a no-look pass to Nahuel Molina who wasted no time in converting his chance in the box to put Argentina ahead in the 35th minute.
Lionel Messi converts from the penalty spot to double Argentina’s lead in the 73rd minute.
In the 83rd minute, Wout Weghorst found the net with Netherlands first attempt on goal and later pulled them Level in the last minute that sent the game to extra time.
The bad-tempered match made referee Mateu Lahoz give out a record 17 yellow cards and a red card in the game that’s the most in a World Cup game in history.
Argentina will play Croatia who miraculously knocked out five times world champions Brazil on Tuesday at the Lusail Iconic Stadium.
