The goalkeeper’s “ole” to Messi, Dibu Martínez’s fight for the ball and the provocation of Lautaro

The quarterfinal match of the Qatar World Cup enter here Argentine national team y Netherlands It will remain in the memory not only for the 2-0 advantage that dissipated in the last seconds of regular time and the definition by penalties, but also for the repercussions that it generated as a result of the provocations, the crossed statements, the dedications and the disciplinary files. One of the moments that caused people to talk was the penalty shootout, of which several things were not noticed at the time and were discovered later, thanks to the television cameras and what was recorded by the fans in the Lusail stadium.

The series began with the auction of Virgil van Dyke, notable for his efficiency in taking penalties in Liverpool with a lot of power. the archer Emiliano Martinez he tried to distract him by moving constantly from one side to the other, almost without lifting his feet from the floor. The Dutch defender shot with the usual force, but “Dibu” flew to the right of him, cleared and went to celebrate with the fans located behind the goal. Some time later, Van Dijk recognized the influence of Argentine supporters in his ill-fated penalty: “We practiced, but you cannot simulate a situation of 80,000 Argentines whistling”.

Lionel Messi He was the first Argentine kicker. At the moment he looked for the ball, the goalkeeper Andries Noppert came up and instead of handing it over, he moved it to another side, to annoy the rosarino. It was unsuccessful: the number 10 fooled the giant and kicked soft and through the middle. Argentina was ahead 1-0.

The next Dutch enforcer was Steven Berghouse. Martínez took note of what Noppert did with Messi and redoubled the bet: he took the ball as if to make it appear that he would not have the same attitude as his Dutch counterpart, but when the kicker arrived, he moved it. In this case, the mental game seemed to have an effect: the Ajax player did not finish with the same force as Van Dijk, Dibu saved the shot and celebrated with a dance that referred to one he did in the 2021 Copa América.

Then came the time to Leandro Paredes, who could double Argentina’s advantage, and did so with one of the best executions. The shuttle kicked very hard and very precise, and despite Noppert guessing the side, the ball went past the right post Of the arc. The celebration of the 5th was energetic.

Teun Koopmeiners He had the responsibility, later, of scoring the first goal for the Netherlands, with the risk of qualifying for Argentina. When he came up, Martínez extended his hand hoping for a greeting, but the midfielder never responded. Then they readjusted, and the Atalanta player completed his attempt before a late response from the Argentine goalkeeper; 1-2.

The next one was Gonzalo Montiel, who had entered extra time and was considered a specialist from 11 meters during his time at River. The right-back defended his reputation with a quick run and finishing that left Noppert on the opposite side. In his celebration he remembered the referee Antonio Mateu Lahozto which stared and before whom he agreed with his face, as if dedicating the goal to him.

For the fourth Dutch penalty, Martínez did his thing again. While the Spanish referee was arguing with Noppert, the man from Mar del Plata he took advantage of the inattention to kick the ball back towards the middle of the court, where the other players were grouped. The person in charge of executing Wout Weghorstfinally got hold of the ball and left Martínez on the opposite side: 2-3.

When Weghorst scored his goal, Martínez went to look for the ball and the striker, who had scored a double to tie in regular time and would be insulted (“bobo”) by Messi in the mixed zone, He starred in a struggle with the goalkeeper while trying to speed up the development. His companions exploded in the central circle and thus led to the expulsionfor the second yellow card, to Denzel Dumfrieswhich would end up delaying the shot of Enzo Fernandez.

That shot could be the final one. Martínez himself delivered the ball to Benfica’s midfielder, as to avoid inconvenience. But the young midfielder missed: his shot went wide to Noppert’s right. Later, the goalkeeper reproached him with good vibes for his decision: “In the middle, pel…! In the middle!”.

The goalkeeper from Heerenveen then repeated the action of Martínez de get the ball quickly to give it to the next compatriot, who in this case was Luke de Young. The striker gave his country hope by crossing his forehand shot, deceiving Dibu and drawing a tie at 3, but Argentina had one attempt left on the wheel of 5.

Lautaro Martinez, in a World Cup below expectations personally, he had to convert to put Argentina in a semifinal. In the path was surrounded by several Dutchand then Noppert He approached with the ball and wanted to say something in his ear, but the bahiense snatched it from him and pushed him, ordering him to return to the bow. El Toro crossed her auction and accomplished the mission. The Argentine players ran towards him except Messi, who went to hug the goalkeeper. Dibu Martinez he was sprawled out on the grass, excited.

And in the midst of the celebrations and the connection with the fans, Messi and Martínez were congratulated on the field of play by the president of the AFA, Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia. And while the three of them were in a hug, the goalkeeper seemed to address the manager confidently: “Enjoy it, fat man. enjoy it”.

THE NATION