On penalties, Argentina defeated the Netherlands 4-3. Croatia will now face Lionel Messi and company in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals with a handball of the captain video currently viral
Watch Lionel Messi’s “hand of God” moment.
In the quarterfinal matchup against the Netherlands on Friday, Lionel Messi may have had his second hand of god moment, his first at the FIFA World Cup. In the second half, the ball shattered the No. 10’s hand. He was not, however, arrested.
Lionel Messi Hand Of God Moment From Argentina vs Netherlands, Handball Video Goes Viral
hand of God #Argentina #GOAT #Messi #FifaWorldCup pic.twitter.com/ipvFcsycGs
— Ayvind (@Ayvind1) December 9, 2022
Croatia to face off against Argentina in Semi-Final of FIFA world cup 2022
Croatia will face Argentina in the semi-finals after Croatia overcame Brazil earlier in the day. Argentina defeated the Netherlands 4-3 on penalties to advance. The ball made contact with Messi’s hand in the second half, with Argentina leading 1-0. The referee, however, determined it was not deliberate and did not book the player.
Eventually, after extra time, the score remained 2-2. Argentina was stunned by two late goals from the Netherlandsย which forced the game to the extra time. During the penalty shoot out, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez stopped two shots during the shootout, but Messi successfully converted his penalty. To end the game, Lautaro Martinez converted the winning penalty.
The match was full of controversies.
The first-half penalty against Messi infuriated Dutch manager Louis van Gaal. Some social media users made fun of the match referee for making decisions that favoured Argentina. “I want the penalty to be reviewed. And the Argentines waste so much time… However, the referee did not cause our defeat. Since we drew, “After the game, Van Gaal said. He will soon step down as manager of the Netherlands.
“I understand that this is Messi’s final World Cup, but this referee definitely seems to have a bias against him. Just my thoughts, “a user on Twitter said. One more was seen saying, “Yes, The Netherlands plays trash, but the ref is obviously assisting Argentina, if not just because of Messi.”
“The game is over for this referee. Messi’s clear intentional handball goes unpunished. He then commits two fouls in a row before being called, none of which were in the game’s flow, and he is not given a card. Aรงuna’s penalty was for diving. Simply rubbish”, a third person tweeted.