Fifa World Cup: Lionel Messi admits relief as Marcos Rojo goal sends fans bonkers in Buenos Aires
Messi says he ‘did not expect to suffer so much’ as Rojo scores late on to give Argentina a 2-1 win over Nigeria and a place in the last 16, following night of high drama in Russia
A relieved Lionel Messi said he had not expected to suffer so much against Nigeria, but that he and his Argentina teammates were always confident about winning the crucial World Cup clash that secured them a place in the last 16.
The Barcelona forward opened the scoring with a fine goal in the dramatic 2-1 win over Nigeria that sent the South Americans through to the knockout stages behind Croatia in group D.
“We already knew we were going to win, we were confident that God would help us, that all would turn out well. But we did not expect the complication of the draw, of suffering so much,” Messi told Argentine media.
After the Africans equalised through a Victor Moses penalty in the 51st minute, captain Messi said his side got “nervous”.
“We had the impression that time was going by faster. That’s the reason we started attacking and pressing more and that’s how we managed to score to go through,” he said in a news conference later on Tuesday.