Lionel Messi appeared to give the Netherlands’ coaching staff a piece of his mind after Argentina’s World Cup quarter-final victory.
La Selección came out on top of what was a drama-filled tie that saw a mammoth 15 yellow cards and one red card – but Messi was still fuming with his opponents after the game.
The Argentina star – who overtook Pele for the most assists in the World Cup knockout stages in the tie – was one of the stars that found himself in the book after arguing with referee Antonio Lahoz for awarding a free-kick at the end of normal time.
He was also hit by a poor tackle from Netherlands goalscorer and Burnley man Wout Weghorst, but the Clarets striker went unpunished while already on a yellow – before he notched his stunning equaliser.
After the final whistle, Messi celebrated his country’s victory in front of the Dutch players.
And the Netherlands coaching staff also seemed to get an earful, with Messi approaching them after the game and appearing to tell Dutch manager Louis van Gaal and his staff: “You talk too much.”
It was a thought echoed by teammate Emiliano Martinez, who said: “I heard Van Gaal saying that in a penalty shoot-out they had the advantage, or if we went to penalties then they would win – I think he needs to keep his mouth shut.”
Messi’s rage didn’t end there though, as the star reportedly also took aim at an unknown member of the Dutch team before his post-match interview.
Translated by the Daily Express, Messi is alleged to have looked at someone off camera and said in an angry tone: “What are you looking at, go ahead, stupid!”
The Argentine reportedly also complained about the standard of officiating in the game.
“I don’t want to talk about the referee because they sanction you for being honest,” he said. “I think people saw what it was. FIFA cannot use this kind of referee for this type of match.”
Messi had provided the assist for Nahuel Molina’s opening goal before doubling his country’s advantage in the the second half, converting from the spot.
But Argentina’s hard work quickly came undone after the Netherlands unleashed Burnley man Wout Weghorst from the pitch who scored two goals to send the tie to extra time at the death.
La Seleccion were victorious in the eventual shootout, as Messi scored again from the spot, helping to send Argentina through to face Croatia in the semi-finals.
The second lot of semi-finalists will be decided on Saturday, with Morocco and Portugal facing off before France and England go head-to-head – live on talkSPORT.
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