Argentina will now play against Croatia in the World Cup semi-finals, beating the Netherlands 4-3 on penalties after a thrilling 2-2 draw in extra time on a night of World Cup drama. Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was the hero of the penalty shootout after the South American squandered a two-goal advantage. In the final minutes of regular time after Lionel Messi caught on in the final quarter. Wout Weghorst scored his two dramatic late goals. The second goal came from a very resourceful free-kick with 11 minutes of extra time, when the Netherlands fought back to force extra time with his 7 minutes remaining. (Read Also: FIFA World Cup Quarter-Finals: The Latest Roaster of Matches)
Argentina looked poised to reach the last four after Messi evoked a brilliant assist from Nahuel in his Molina and a clear goal from a penalty in his spot.
Just hours after Brazil and Neymar were eliminated from the tournament by Croatian penalties, Argentina survived and maintained South American interest in the competition. Lusail Stadium felt like Argentina’s home, as at least three-quarters of the 88,235 crowd supported the South American team. There were only a few orange shirts in the crowd.
However, the whole thing was treated to a suspenseful late-night drama that finally ended before 1:00 a.m. local time.
After a cautious start, Messi created a moment of inspiration ten minutes before half-time, creating the team’s first set.
With no indication of his intentions, he split the Dutch defense with a brilliant back pass, and between Daley Blind and Virgil van Dijk he passed Nahuel Molina’s pass.
Dutch coach Louis van Gaal responded with a double substitution at half-time, substituting Teun Koop miners and Steven Berghuis in midfield for Bergwijn and Marten De Loan. However, while the Dutch saw many possessions, their game was too predictable and devoid of ill will.
Free kick genius –
After Denzel Dumfries beat Marcos Acuna in the box in the 73rd minute and Messi sank the ball into the corner without a mistake, it was only natural that the Argentinian felt good and extended the lead in the 73rd minute.
However, the Dutch didn’t want to leave in the faint-hearted – seven minutes. Later, a deep cross from Berghuis was followed by a sloping header from Weghorst to recover the goal.
Lautaro then forced a diving save from Noppelt. Only the post kept Fernandez in range as Messi fired.
In the end, it was a pk match.
Van Dijk took the lead and Martinez dived to his right for the save. Messi followed suit and Martinez made no mistakes before saving again from Bergis.
This time there was no turning back for the Dutch as Argentina won the penalty shootout and advanced to the semi-finals despite Fernandez’s penalty.
With 10 minutes of injury time, the Dutch raised expectations and stirred excitement with several big confrontations. I put Van Dijk forward and sent the ball into the penalty area.
Later in injury time, one of his highballs kicked his free kick just outside his area for a penalty.
Instead, to everyone’s surprise, Koop miners faked the expected shot and played a short pass to Weghorst. Heleveled past Enzo Fernandez.
After a heavy celebration, the game went into overtime and was strangely quiet. But revived towards the end of the second period.
Lautaro Martinez saw the fans see Dyke’s powerful shot hit the target. Another Fernandez shot flew just over the bar.
Lautaro then forced a diving save from Noppelt and only the post kept Fernandez in range as Messi fired.
In the end, it was a pk match, Van Dijk took the lead and Martinez dived to his right for the save. Messi followed suit and Martinez made no mistakes before saving again from Bergis.
This time there was no turning back for the Dutch as Argentina won the penalty shootout and advanced to the semi-finals despite Fernandez’s penalty.
