Lionel Messi has made an astonishing revelation about his iconic celebration against the Netherlands in the 2022 World Cup. It has been almost a year since Messi won the ultimate prize in soccer in Qatar. However, Messi has only one regret despite winning the World Cup.
Lionel Messi has recently opened up about Argentina’s feisty clash against the Netherlands in the World Cup 2022. In an interview with ESPN, Messi also talked about his iconic celebration in front of Dutch coach Louis Van Gaal in the match. With Argentina grabbing the early lead in the first half, they were awarded a penalty in the 73rd minute.
🇦🇷🎙️ | “El Topo Gigio was born to me there and I automatically regretted it. As soon as I did it I said:
‘What an idiot. The only thing missing is for us not to win.’”
🎙️:Lionel Messi. pic.twitter.com/jEJ2G6XuoV
— 🇦🇷 🌞𐌕𐌉𐌊𐌉 𐌕𐌀𐌊𐌀 𐌕𐌀𐌋𐌊𐌄𐌓🎙️🧉 (@TikiTakaTalker) December 2, 2023
Lionel Messi duly scored from the spot despite the Dutch goalkeeper’s best efforts. After scoring the goal, Messi went in front of the Dutch dugout and imitated the ex-Argentine star Juan Roman Riquelme’s ‘Topo Gigio’ celebration. However, Messi had instant regrets after his celebration, as he revealed in the interview. He said, “As soon as I did it I thought: ‘What an idiot. They can still tie it.’ These things usually happen.“
Lionel Messi’s worst fears did come true as Wout Weghorst scored in the dying seconds of the match to tie the game. However, fortunately for Messi, Argentina defeated the Netherlands in the penalty shootout thanks to their goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez’s heroics.
Lionel Messi had criticized the Netherlands’ style of play
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi also criticized the Netherlands’ style of play following Argentina’s win over Louis Van Gaal’s men. In what was a heavily contested encounter, the game saw 48 fouls, 14 yellow cards, and a red card. In a post-match interview, a visibly heated Messi blasted Van Gaal and the Dutch team for resorting to playing long balls throughout the match.
🗣️ Lionel Messi: “Van Gaal says he plays good football but only throws long-balls”. pic.twitter.com/goRfxnNYct
— Barça Worldwide (@BarcaWorldwide) December 9, 2022
Messi said, “Van Gaal says that they play good football, but what he did was put on tall people and hit long balls.” Messi also had a word or two for the match official, Mateu Lahoz. Following the match, Messi slammed Lahoz for his poor officiating. Messi even went to the extent of asking FIFA to not appoint referees who aren’t up to the task. However, Messi reportedly later apologized to Lahoz for his harsh comments.
Despite Messi’s criticism, Van Gaal‘s tactics almost worked against the comparatively shorter Argentina side. The Netherlands’ first goal came through a long ball which was headed into the goal by Wout Weghorst. However, ultimately, Messi’s Argentina’s resilience paid off as they won 4-3 in the penalty shootout, with Emi Martinez saving two spot kicks.