The defeat of Argentina for Saudi Arabia today (22) was classified by Messi as a ‘very hard hit’. The shirt 10 opened the score for Albiceleste, but saw the Saudis turn the match already in the final stage and their selection debut with a setback in the World Cup which, according to him, will be their last. In an interview after the duel, the star lamented the result and stated that the players and technical committee are ‘dead’.
"We're dead. It's a very hard hit. We didn't want to open that way. We wanted to win, to give peace. This moment is to focus on the fortress, the union of the group. It's time to be closer than ever. Now it's quiet. It was a very hard hit, a painful defeat. We have to keep trusting ourselves. Let's try to beat Mexico to see what it looks like [the situation in the group]".
said Messi
The turn against Saudi Arabia put an end to a sequence of 36 games of invincibility from Argentina. The last defeat had been for Brazil, in the semifinal of the Copa América in 2019. The selection, which was in the arms of his fans, was much criticized by the internet performance. Faced with the reception for defeat, Messi asked the people to trust the team.
"May they trust [cheers]. It's a very hard blow for everyone, for the people and for us. We didn't. Let them trust that this group will not let them down. We've played games with this feature and we'll move on."
said the player
Still in the interview, Messi gave his vision about what happened in the field and which eventually resulted in Argentina's defeat. The attacker also highlighted the union of the group.
"We had goal situations and began to have many situations of impediment. We fell for the mistake of speeding too fast. We knew they'd play with the high line. We've accelerated a bit. Then we start to mess up, lose the operation, lose the middle. The goal so soon confused us. We haven't found the game we've been playing for a long time. When the game was played, the result against it is more difficult. It's a time for us to be closer than ever. We didn't expect this, but it's up to us."
finished
With the result, Argentina can finish the first round out of the first two places of the group, which will give a place in the matata phase. From the front, the Argentines will still have Mexico and Poland to define their situation in the competition.
