Lionel Messi believes his Argentina team-mates silenced their critics with their World Cup semi-final win over England. The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner made both of the defending champions' goals as they broke English hearts in Atlanta.
The 39-year-old barely got a kick in the first half, but as Thomas Tuchel's side dropped into a back five, Messi found more space and began to get control. His pass from a short corner routine gave Enzo Fernandez the time to find the top corner from 25 yards, while his perfect, right-footed cross to Lautaro Martinez meant the Inter Milan forward could not miss.
As the England players collapsed into the turf in disappointment, Messi and his team-mates celebrated. The Barcelona icon, and now Inter Miami star, praised his team-mates for stopping his country's critics from talking 'nonsense'.
Messi's Emotional Reaction
After the match, Messi said: 'It was a special match against England, we couldn't lose. While this group doesn't owe anything to anyone, you know how Argentinians are, we always demand more.'
'I think if we had lost today, people would have come out and said some nonsense, and we didn't give them the chance. We knew that we were better than them in terms of football.'
'But a lot is at stake in a match of this magnitude, where historic events happen in these games, but it's still special because of everything it represents, and we had to win.'
Historic Final Appearance
When Messi appears against Spain, he will become only the second player after Brazilian icon Cafu to play in three World Cup finals. Victory against the Euro 2024 winners would also see the 39-year-old become the first captain to retain the World Cup.
He also moved to the top of the World Cup golden boot table, with his two goal contributions taking his tally up to eight strikes and four assists. Messi also added: 'Everything we experienced was incredible, from the very beginning, as we said.'
'Although it was a football match, when we started to enter the field and during the anthem, we experienced special feelings, and the group felt that. It wasn't just another victory; it was an important victory that the Argentine people wanted, and we wanted it too, and it put us in another World Cup final.'
'It's crazy to play two World Cup finals in a row. This group is incredible. Today we went looking for it again when things got tough, we never stopped believing, never stopped trying.'
'With our style of play, today we really put our game into it when we were down on the scoreboard. We pinned them back in their own half and it's an enormous joy.'
