Following Argentina's 2-1 comeback victory over England in the World Cup semi-final, Lionel Messi and several Argentina players were captured on camera examining Jordan Pickford's water bottle, which contained detailed penalty-taking notes. The bottle, left on the pitch after the match, was titled 'Argentina penalty taker list' and included specific instructions for each player.
Pickford's Preparations Revealed
A close-up image of the bottle showed Messi's name at the top, with the note 'fake left - dive right' next to it. Other players, including Nico Gonzalez and Marcos Senesi, also had their names listed with corresponding directions. The Argentina captain appeared to nod in agreement as Senesi explained the notes to him.
Enzo Fernandez, who scored Argentina's equalizer, was also seen pointing at his name on the bottle before letting out a relieved smile and gesturing upwards, seemingly thankful the match did not go to penalties. The Chelsea star had already beaten Pickford from distance in normal time with a superb strike that cancelled out Anthony Gordon's opener. Lautaro Martinez later scored the winner.
Criticism of Pickford
Pickford faced criticism for failing to save Fernandez's goal, with Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, and even teammate Jude Bellingham expressing disappointment. Upon watching a replay, Bellingham was seen angrily exclaiming: 'It's the middle of the goal!' Carragher wrote in The Telegraph: 'Pickford should still have saved Enzo Fernández's shot.'
Gary Neville echoed this sentiment on the Stick to Football World Cup Watch Party, saying: 'Not gone in the corner, that. He's got to save that, got to save it. He's past it.'
Tuchel's Defensive Changes Criticized
England manager Thomas Tuchel also came under fire for his defensive substitutions, introducing Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn, and Nico O'Reilly while taking off John Stones, Gordon, and Declan Rice with significant time left in the second half. Despite the elimination, England will face France in the third-place play-off on Saturday before departing the United States.
