Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez has claimed Argentina were the team 'who played without fear' in their dramatic 2-1 World Cup semifinal victory over England on Wednesday night. The centre-back, who played the full match, said his nation took the initiative from the first minute and were not intimidated by the occasion.
England's defensive approach backfires
England took the lead in the 55th minute through a goal that put them ahead, but manager Thomas Tuchel's subsequent defensive substitutions proved costly. Tuchel replaced Anthony Gordon with Ezri Konsa, followed by a double change 10 minutes later that saw Reece James and Declan Rice replaced by Dan Burn and Nico O'Reilly. Shortly after those changes, Lionel Messi assisted the equaliser, and then set up Lautaro Martinez's match-winner in added time.
Tuchel faced widespread criticism for his negative tactics, but the England boss insisted he had no regrets, stating: "It's easy to say my decisions were wrong after the defeat."
Martinez: 'We went for it from the first minute'
Speaking after the match, Martinez said: "I won't lie to you, we're all Argentinians, and we experienced it like the fans. We knew the magnitude of this game and went for it from the first minute. We had to suffer because they're a very tough opponent, but in the end, we're always the ones who take the initiative, the ones who play without fear, and the ones who want to win."
The United defender also addressed criticism from Gary Neville, who had questioned Martinez's partnership with Tottenham's Cristian Romero before the game. Martinez responded: "We're used to people always talking about us. It seems like they like doing it, and we respond on the pitch, that's it, always with respect."
Romero hits back at critics
Romero added his own thoughts on the criticism, saying: "The only thing that I hope for is that when I retire, I am not that stupid. Hopefully I won't criticise a player or anyone. Because at the end of the day, we are doing our best for our national team. Sometimes it goes right for us, sometimes badly, but we are just happy to be in a World Cup final again. I think we are making history, for us it is something really huge, and we feel the significance of this shirt like no one else."
What's next for Martinez
Martinez is set to start for Argentina in the World Cup final against Spain on Sunday. After the tournament, he will take a post-World Cup break before reporting back for pre-season with Manchester United. Meanwhile, United were linked with a transfer for Romero earlier in the window, but well-placed sources quickly denied any interest in the Tottenham defender.
