Argentina score ‘flukiest goal ever’ to edge closer to Messi’s World Cup dream
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Argentina scored the “flukiest goal ever” against Croatia to come within inches of Lionel Messi’s World Cup dream.
Messi, 35, scored Argentina’s 34th minute opener from the penalty spot after Julian Alvarez was brought down by the opposition goalkeeper. But the two-time champions doubled their lead just five minutes later courtesy of 22-year-old Alvarez.
The Manchester City striker received the ball from Messi on the half-way line before charging all the way through the Croatian half. He confidently gallivanted into the penalty box where he was dispossessed twice.
READ MORE: Messi's savage celebration and clash with Van Gaal stemmed from bitter Riquelme feud
Yet in a huge stroke of luck for Alvarez, the ball bounced off him after both challenges, setting him up for a simple one-on-one finish against Dominik Livakovic. And despite the commentators praising the forward for his run, viewers back home were quick to point out the significant luck involved.
One Twitter user wrote: “That’s the flukiest run I’ve ever seen in my life. But f****** wow” while another tweeted: “THAT IS THE FLUKIEST GOAL YOU'LL SEE HAHAHA.”
Do you think Argentina's second was the luckiest goal of the tournament? Let us know in the comments section.
A third added: “Why are y’all hyping up that Alvarez goal?????? He literally got so lucky and he just ran forward.”
And a fourth commented: “Nah the way Alvarez just kept gettin lucky with the rebounds, that was some fake FIFA goal.”
It came after ITV pundits Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Ian Wright all disapproved of the referee's decision to award a penalty for the first, with Alvarez seemingly running into the Croatian shot-stopper.
The goals put Argentina within touching distance of a place in the final on Sunday. Messi will be hoping to avoid another crushing defeat at the last hurdle in a World Cup, having reached the same stage in 2014 before suffering a 1-0 extra-time defeat to Germany.
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- Lionel Messi
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