‘I’m angry’ – Messi reflects on penalty ‘mistake’ and looks ahead to ‘another World Cup’ in knockout rounds

Argentina captain Lionel Messi was angry at missing a penalty against Poland but is looking ahead after still seeing his team qualify for the last 16. 

​Argentina beat PolandMessi misses penaltyIs angry at his mistake

WHAT HAPPENED? Messi shared his thoughts after Argentina’s 2-0 win over Poland at the World Cup. The captain missed a penalty in the first half, setting an unwanted record in the process, but saw team-mates Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez score to fire Lionel Scaloni’s side into the knockout stages as group winners.

WHAT THEY SAID: “I’m angry for having missed the penalty, but the team came out stronger after my mistake. We knew that once the first goal went in, it would change the game and they would open up,” he told reporters. “The previous game gave us a lot of peace of mind and we went out onto the field thinking we had to win.”
AND WHAT’S MORE: Messi also spoke about his team’s chances after safely making it through to the last 16 as group winners. “The match against Australia is going to be very difficult. Anyone beats anyone, everything is very even,” he added. “We have to prepare the game in the best way as we always do.We must be calm and go game by game. Now another World Cup begins and hopefully we can continue to maintain what we did today.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Argentina have recovered from their shock defeat to Saudi Arabia to progress as group winners and will be favourites to beat Australia and reach the quarter-finals. La Albiceleste will then face either the Netherlands or the USA in the quarter-finals.

IN THREE PHOTOS:

DID YOU KNOW? Messi is the oldest player on record (since 1966) to create 5+ chances and make 5+ dribbles in a World Cup match, with the previous oldest being Diego Maradona against Nigeria in 1994.

WHAT NEXT FOR ARGENTINA: La Albiceleste go on to play Australia in the last 16 on Sunday.

 

 

Related Post
Share
Published by

Recent Posts

Mavericks pick Cooper Flagg at No. 1 in 2025 NBA draft

Dallas Mavericks have bagged the services of forward Cooper Flagg with the first pick of… Read More

June 27, 2025

Nick Kyrgios predicts Carlos Alcaraz to have better career than Jannik Sinner

Nick Kyrgios has predicted that Carlos Alcaraz will have a better career than Jannik Sinner.… Read More

June 27, 2025

Pep Guardiola says Manchester City played like a good team after a long time

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola noted that his side played like a good team after… Read More

June 27, 2025

Aakash Chopra opens up on Jofra Archer’s return, says fast bowler can be a game-changer ahead of 2nd Test against India

Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra has noted that while Jofra Archer has been added… Read More

June 27, 2025

Michael Vaughan lauds Rishabh Pant, says there is a lot of science in his madness

Former England captain Michael Vaughan showered praise on Rishabh Pant after the opening Test match… Read More

June 27, 2025

Ajinkya Rahane picks India’s two best hundreds from ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

Indian batter Ajinkya Rahane picked KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant’s centuries in the second innings… Read More

June 27, 2025