The Argentines beat the Poles throughout the match and practically did not let them do anything, Robert Lewandowski et al. but even after a 0:2 defeat, they were finally able to celebrate progress, thanks to a one-goal better score than Mexico. The key to progress was Szczesny, who was still sure that there would be no penalty after hitting Messi in the face with his hand.
Only the VAR had to evaluate the ambiguous situation, the whole stadium was anxiously awaiting his verdict. “I spoke to Messi before the penalty. I told him that I would bet 100 euros that the referee would not award a penalty. So I ended up losing the bet,” the Polish goalkeeper admitted in an interview with Norwegian TV2.
Montage of the World Cup match Poland – Argentinavideo: Czech television
“It’s probably not legal to bet during the World Cup, so I’ll probably get punished, but I don’t care now,” laughed the Juventus goalkeeper in the promotion euphoria.
“And I won’t pay Messi anything either. I think he doesn’t care about 100 euros, right?” continued Szczesna with a relieved spirit.
But he was understandably delighted with the success of his operation. “It’s nice to take a penalty from one of the best players of all time. For a goalkeeper it’s probably the best thing he can feel, it’s a particularly good feeling at the World Cup.”
Messi failed at an important moment, but in the end he and his team were able to rejoice in the progress. “I’m sorry I didn’t give the penalty, but our team was even stronger after my mistake. I knew once I scored the first goal, it would change the whole game,” said Messi after the match.
Argentina will meet Australia in the round of 16, the Poles will take on defending champions France.
