Lionel Messi produced two big moments to knock England out of the World Cup last night.
Lionel Messi hailed Argentina’s comeback win over England as “historic” after booking a spot in his third World Cup final.
The Three Lions capitulated in Atlanta despite taking a 55th-minute lead through Anthony Gordon. Thomas Tuchel’s side led until the 85th minute when a wave of Argentina attack finally broke through.
Messi provided the assist for Enzo Fernandez before delivering an inch-perfect cross in stoppage time as Lautaro Martinez headed home the winner. Newcastle United defender Dan Burn came on in the closing stages but could not help England get over the line.
‘Special’ - Lionel Messi
Speaking post-match, Messi insisted Argentina knew they were better than England while crowning a “special” win. He said: "It was a special match against England, we couldn't lose. While this group doesn't owe anything to anyone, you know how Argentinians are, we always demand more.
"I think if we had lost today, people would have come out and said some nonsense, and we didn't give them the chance. We knew that we were better than them in terms of football. But a lot is at stake in a match of this magnitude, where historic events happen in these games, but it's still special because of everything it represents, and we had to win."
‘It hurts’ - Dan Burn
Burn will now prepare for a dead rubber in the third-place play-off against France. Reflecting on the semi-final defeat, the 34-year-old said: “I think that when you come within sort of 10-15 minutes of a World Cup final and then don’t get it done, it hurts. I’m obviously very gutted right now but I’m so proud of what the team has done.
“We don’t even think anyone gave us a chance coming into this, the brotherhood that we spoke about just took us a long way and if I’m being honest, I thought we would do it. I just had that feeling that this was our time but I think Argentina showed why they are world champions, they have been there and they have done it.”
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