Messi fires back at Argentina’s World Cup help claims
Lionel Messi rejected claims Argentina have been favored after another late World Cup comeback sent the champions into the final against Spain.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Lionel Messi had heard enough after Argentina dragged themselves out of trouble again, turning an 85th-minute deficit against England into a 2-1 World Cup semifinal win.
The Argentina captain pushed back at critics who say the reigning champions have benefited from friendly officiating and favoritism around the tournament. After Wednesday’s victory, Messi said Argentina’s run was built on quality and nerve, not gifts.
“We’ve been the best over these past four years, either you like it or not, and no matter what anyone says,” Messi said after the England match. “Once again, we’ve established ourselves among the top two teams in the world. That proves that everything we’ve done is no fluke and that nothing was handed to us.”
Argentina now face Spain in Sunday’s final, one win from consecutive World Cup titles. Their path there has been loud, late and loaded with tension.
Against England, Argentina were behind 1-0 entering the final minutes before rallying to win 2-1. The result sent crowds into the streets of Buenos Aires, where tens of thousands celebrated the champions’ latest escape.
It was not the first time Argentina had survived a scare in this tournament. They beat Cape Verde and Switzerland after extra time, and against Egypt they came from 2-0 down with 11 minutes left in regulation to win 3-2.
Those comebacks have fed the noise around the team. Fans have argued the bracket helped Argentina, while unproven social media claims have suggested soccer’s governing body wants Messi and Argentina to lift the trophy again.
Some criticism has come from opponents, too. Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said after his team’s defeat that Egypt had been hurt by a soccer establishment favoring Messi and Argentina. The Egyptian Football Association also said it “cannot remain silent” about what it described as unfair and biased officiating in that match.
Switzerland were also left furious after their elimination. In that game, Dan Ndoye had just made it 1-1 in the 67th minute when Leandro Paredes was booked for a challenge on Breel Embolo. Video showed Embolo falling before contact, and because the Swiss forward had already been cautioned, he was sent off.
Swiss coach Murat Yakin criticized the decision after the match, saying his team had been punished by a rule he considered “completely unacceptable.” He said it was painful to go out in that way and called his players “the real heroes.”
Argentina had mostly avoided the controversy in public before the England win. Coach Lionel Scaloni previously told reporters asking about it not to consume so much social media.
After reaching the final, Scaloni said the talk would continue, but he was not troubled by it. He added that with VAR in use, any outside help would have to be obvious, and said Argentina knew there had been none.
Enzo Fernández also made his feelings clear on the pitch. After scoring Argentina’s equalizer against England, the Chelsea midfielder cupped his hands to his ears and then moved his fingers as if urging critics to keep talking.
Fernández said the celebration came from “a mix of euphoria and frustration” after so much discussion around the team.
Messi framed the final berth as the answer. He said reaching back-to-back World Cup finals is rare, and added that if Argentina had lost to England, critics would have had room to say more. Argentina, he said, did not give them that chance.
This story draws on original reporting from ESPN.com.