Lionel Messi fumes at referee after Argentina draw

Photo by Juan I. Roncoroni-Pool/Getty Images

VAR stole the show once again

Lionel Messi was left fuming at the referee after Argentina dropped points for the first time in World Cup qualifying on Thursday.

The captain looked to have made it 2-1 to the hosts just before the hour mark but saw the goal wiped out after VAR ruled there had been a foul in the build-up.

“You screwed us twice!” was Messi’s reaction to the decision having previously been angered by referee Raphael Claus earlier in the match, according to Sport.

The Barcelona captain wasn’t too impressed when Paraguay were awarded a penalty after Miguel Almirón was fouled, as he felt there had been a similar offence earlier in the game which had gone unpunished.

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni also called for more consistency from VAR after seeing his side held to a 1-1 draw.

“I think that in some way it is necessary to seek to unify the issue of the VAR. I am not talking in good or bad faith, but to unify criteria.”

Messi and Co. now head to Peru for their final World Cup qualifier of 2020. Ricardo Gareca’s side are still searching for their first win of the campaign after opening with a 2-2 draw against Paraguay and a 4-2 defeat to Brazil and take on Chile later today.

Source: barcablaugranes.com