Leandro Paredes, Argentina’s defensive midfielder, kicked the ball towards the Netherlands bench in the final minutes of regulation time as tempered flared between the sides in the quarterfinal of the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Paredes was given a yellow card. He fouled Nathan Ake and then hoofed the ball straight at the Dutch bench, who charged on to the field. The two teams are playing at the Lusail Stadium and winner will advance to the semifinals against Luka Modric’s Croatia.
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Late goals by Netherlands helped them equalise 2-2. Wout Weghorst scored their opener in the 83rd minutes, before a clever freekick in the 101st took the Dutch to extra-time.
Lional Messi’s inch-perfect assist in the first-half gave them a 1-0 lead. The Argentine captain then converted from the spot to go two goals up in the game.
“Leandro Paredes very lucky to escape with just a yellow. Reckless challenge on Nathan Ake before booting the ball at the Netherlands bench,” a Twitter user said.
“This referee has been terrible. Never bad control of the match. Leandro Paredes has gotten away with too many reckless tackles,” another one said.
“Leandro Paredes chopping down Ake, kicking the ball into the Netherland’s bench, then getting dropped by van Dijk all in one sequence,” a third one tweeted.
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In the 101st minute, Koopmeiners, taking the free-kick, did not shoot. He instead reversed a clever pass into Weghorst in the box. The striker held off the defender and angled a precise shot past Emi Martinez.
Meanwhile, fans are criticising referee Antonio Mateu for his decisions during the quarterfinal. He shelled out at least 11 yellow cards in the match, even booking Lionel Messi and Virgil van Dijk.
