Lionel Messi can still dream of punctuating his career with a world title. Argentina has indeed climbed to the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar by beating Australia 2-1.
The Albiceleste scored through Messi (35th), author of his 3rd goal of the tournament, and Alvarez (57th). The Socceroos responded in vain to a strike from Goodwin inadvertently deflected by Enzo Fernandez (77th) out of reach of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez. Argentina will face the Netherlands in the quarter-finals for what should be one of the major posters of the competition.
Messi (35), who was playing the 1000th game of his professional career, scored his 788th goal, his 93rd in the national jersey. It is, however, the first time that he has scored in a knockout match in the World Cup.
Two caviars
The seven-time Ballon d’Or distributed 2 caviars to Lautaro Martinez at the end of the game, but the Inter striker squandered the 2 opportunities to put his team to safety. Emiliano Martinez had to pull out all the stops after stoppage time on a shot from substitute Kuol (97th).
After missing its entry into the tournament and losing to Saudi Arabia, Argentina has since raised its head by aligning 3 successes. The team really seems to be gaining momentum. The Dutch are warned…
ats/adav
Read also: Netherlands advance to quarter-finals