USMNT Defender & Rising Star Sergino Dest Leaves Ajax To Sign 5-Year Contract At Barcelona

 

    It wasn't that long ago that a USMNT player going to Europe to compete for any half decent club-let alone one of the great powerhouses-was big news. 2020 has been a nightmare in basically every way possible but at least thanks to social media and cable TV packages, we are able to watch the best American players compete every week throughout Europe and far away from the mediocrity and utterly boring nature of MLS. Following in the footsteps of Christian Pulisic (Chelsea), Tyler Adams (Red Bull Leipzig), Gio Reyna (Dortmund), Weston McKennie (Juventus) and Chris Richards (Bayern Munich) among many others, today fullback Sergino Dest agreed to a five-year deal with Barcelona.

    I can't pretend that I know all that much about Dest in terms of seeing him compete that often. Ajax matches are hard to find unless they are deep into the Champions League and as we all know, the USMNT has barely had any games this year due to the global pandemic. However, reading about him from many trusted soccer writers around the globe, it sounds like there is much to be excited about for this 19-year-old who grew up in the Netherlands but chose to represent the USMNT rather than the Dutch. Take that Arjen Robben! 

      The rumors started to creep up last week that he was choosing between Barcelona and Bayern Munich for his next destination. What a life, huh? Unless you've been paying close attention this year, you'd probably be surprised to hear that Bayern is actually a notch above Barca at the moment. With yesterday's German Super Cup win over Borussia Dortmund, that gave Bayern five (!) trophies this year. Additionally, their roster is more loaded than Barcelona's. Of course this is not to say that Barcelona is merely a consolation prize. Any chance to count one of the best players in soccer history as a teammate-a still in-his-prime Lionel Messi-you jump at that opportunity.  

    Barcelona has turned some of its aging roster (adios Luis Suarez and Arutro Vidal) over since watching its chief rival Real Madrid win La Liga earlier this summer and then getting absolutely destroyed 8-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinals. Ajax used to be one of the top clubs in the world and they've started to regain some of that notoriety in the last few years thanks to an incredible development program. Dest is a shining example of what they do in Amsterdam (besides smoke a ton of weed and ride bicycles like they're going out of style): he played in 35 matches with 27 starts for Ajax last season, adding two goals and six assists.

    Barcelona's new manager Ronald Koeman is from Holland as well so that shouldn't hurt Dest's chances of getting on the field soon for Barcelona. Even if it takes some time to be featured frequently by Koeman, he will be getting incredibly valuable experience training every day alongside stars like goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, defenders Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba, midfielders Sergio Busquets, Frenkie de Jong (his old Ajax teammate) and Philippe Coutinho along with forwards like Messi, Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele. 

    Despite the last few years being a bit of a mess (by their impossibly high standards), Barcelona's trophy case is still overflowing. This is a team that's won 30 Copa Del Rey trophies, 26 La Liga titles, five Champions League trophies and three FIFA Club World Cup trophies. Dest is obviously not afraid of personal challenges and heading to Spain is a logical next stop for a guy who has tantalizing potential. As if you needed any additional reasons to watch Barcelona matches (other than Messi doing his usual wizardry and Ray Hudson's glorious commentary on beIN Sports), here it is. Let's also hope that the USMNT can get back on the field someday soon because for once, their roster is going to be loaded with legitimate talent not just the usual MLS heroes.

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USMNT Gets The Job Done: Advances To the Knockout Round for the 2nd World Cup in a Row

It was not a memorable match by any means since the U.S. men's national team basically held on for dear life the entire time, but when the final whistle blew at Arena Pernambuco in Recife this afternoon that hardly mattered. The Americans had booked a spot in the knockout round of the 2014 World Cup via a 1-0 loss to Germany coupled with a 2-1 Portugal win over Ghana.

The Americans finished in second place in Group G (behind Germany) with four points and a goal-differential of zero. Portugal and Ghana both go home while the U.S. meets Group H winner Belgium on Tuesday (4, ESPN) in the round of 16. Germany plays Algeria on Monday with the elimination games beginning on Saturday while we all get a welcome day off tomorrow following two straight weeks of incredible soccer.

This is the first time ever that the U.S. has made the knockout round in back-to-back World Cups so there is plenty to celebrate, especially when you consider the supposedly great teams that are already gone: Spain, Italy and England to name a few.

Germany controlled the ball the entire way but at least had nothing to show for it in a scoreless first half. The one real good chance for the U.S. came on a curling shot from the top of the box by Graham Zusi that just went over the crossbar. Unlike fraudulent Portugal which was ranked No. 4 for no good reason, Germany is legitimately recognized as the No. 2 team in the world.

At some point, the talent of a team like that will eventually take over. Tim Howard had just made a diving stop when the rebound went out to Thomas Mueller. His one-timed rocket from distance went into the corner of the net. It was a breathtaking strike, his fourth of the tournament which ties him for the lead with Brazil's Neymar and Argentina's Lionel Messi.

From there, it didn't matter that much if Germany scored again. It was more about what happened in the other match (going on at the same time) which makes it even tougher to take. Ghana was the bigger threat to the U.S. since Portugal buried themselves with the opening 4-0 loss to Germany. Cristiano Ronaldo's late goal for Portugal basically sealed the U.S.' fate so I guess we have to take all the nasty stuff we said about him.

After defending the whole game against a superior opponent, in the pouring rain, credit to the U.S. for conjuring up a couple near goals in the dying minutes. Their best passing sequence of the group stage almost resulted in a beautiful goal by Alejandro Bedoya but it was stopped by the sliding German defense. Clint Dempsey had a header from feet away that somehow went over the net. Oh well, bring on Belgium.

I don't fear Belgium nearly as much as I did Germany. They are one of the top teams in the world these days but they are new to these lofty heights so as far as the national team goes, they really don't have much big game experience. We'll see if that plays a role on Tuesday but I feel like if the United States plays up to their capabilities, they could surprise Belgium since make no mistake, the U.S. will be the underdog.

The winner of U.S.-Belgium meets the winner of Argentina-Switzerland (12, ESPN) which precedes it on Tuesday. That quarterfinal match is on July 5. The U.S. lost in the round of 16 to Ghana in 2010 and they've only reached the quarterfinals once in the modern era (2002). Therefore the next few days' worth of hype is well deserved and it would really be something for the sport in this country if they can get past the Belgians to possibly have a shot at Messi (the best player in the world) and Argentina-another top team.

UPDATE 6/27: Jermaine Jones broke his nose yesterday in a collision with teammate Alejandro Bedoya but the good news is that it sounds like he'll still be able to play vs. Belgium. He is carrying a yellow card along with Kyle Beckerman and Omar Gonzalez into the Belgium match. Those only clear when you reach the semifinals.

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Holy Boners: Argentina Will Take On Brazil June 9 At The Meadowlands In New Jersey

It's been a long time since I've taken a trip down to the Garden State (New Jersey) but I might have to do that this summer.

Yesterday, it was announced that Argentina will face Brazil on June 9 at the new Meadowlands (where the Giants and Jets play) in East Rutherford, N.J.

If you live in New York City, Philadelphia, New Jersey or basically anywhere on the East Coast and you call yourself a soccer fan, you are most likely salivating over this dream matchup between two of the top countries in the world with some of the most exciting and aggressive styles.

This friendly takes place on a day designated for international friendlies, which is a great thing since it means that Lionel Messi (Argentina), Neymar (Brazil) and all of their other European-based teammates should be available for this game.

Since this will take place so close to New York City, the most diverse city in the United States, I bet that tens of thousands of Brazilians and Argentinians will be in attendance or simply tailgating in the parking lots. If you've never been to a big time soccer match, I highly recommend it since it should be a top-notch atmosphere that is rarely seen in the United States. The amount of smokeshows should likewise be through the roof, the beer and delicious meats will be plentiful and it's June so it will be warm. What are you waiting for? Get tickets (and invite me)!

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It's Lionel Messi's World, We're All Just Living In It (Even The Lovely Shakira)

Lionel Messi was the big winner earlier today in Zurich since the Barcelona star captured his third straight player of the year award.

The Argentine midfielder joins Ronaldo (1996, 1997, 2002) and Zinedine Zidane (1998, 2000, 2003) as the only three-time winners of the most prestigious award in soccer, the 2011 Ballon d'Or.

With 48% of the vote, Messi beat Cristiano Rondaldo (22%) and Messi's Barcelona teammate Xavi (9%).

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola was chosen men's coach of the year ahead of Real Madrid's Jose Mourinho and Manchester United's Alex Ferguson.

Japan's Homare Sawa won the women's player of the year, ending Marta's five-year reign at the top. Her coach Norio Sasaki was the top women's coach, ending a remarkable year for Japan.

Apropos of nothing, I'm pretty sure I predicted all the winners back when I blogged about the nominees in December. Wish I could have made a profit off of those layup choices!

All three Ballon d'Or nominees were part of the 2011 all-star lineup. It is a team entirely made up of Barcelona, Madrid and Manchester United players.

Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas
Defenders: Dani Alves, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Nemanja Vidic
Midfielders: Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Xabi Alonso
Forwards: Messi, Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney

No clue why FIFA holds the awards in the next calender year and not in December around the holidays, when there's not much else going on. Oh well, what else would you expect from an ultra-corrupt governing body that's still run by an uberbozo like Sepp Blatter?

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Messi, Ronaldo & Xavi Named Three Finalists For FIFA's Top Award

The greatest rivalry going in club soccer has extended to year-end award shows as well. Barcelona stars Lionel Messi and Xavi Hernandez along with Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo were named finalists for FIFA's Ballon d'Or after outlasting 20 other nominees.

Messi also won the award two years ago when France Football magazine chose the best player in Europe. The Ballon d'Or is now merged with FIFA's player of the year award to create one trophy.

"As I've always said, it's great to win individual awards, especially the prestigious ones, but what comes first for me is winning matches and titles,'' Messi said.
Messi and Ronaldo have already scored 17 league goals this season. They face each other in the Spanish league on Saturday.

"It's great to be again nominated as one of the FIFA Ballon d'Or final 3 contenders,'' Ronaldo said on his Twitter account.

Ronaldo won the Golden Ball award in 2008, and his quest to overtake Messi as the world's top player has seen the Portuguese star playing probably the best football of his career over the past year.

He broke the Spanish league scoring record with 40 goals last season, including 11 in his last four games.

Messi scored fewer - 31 league goals - but set up more than Ronaldo. He also walked away with the Champions League and Spanish league titles, while Ronaldo only won the Copa del Rey, or Spanish Cup, scoring with a bullet header in the final against Barcelona.

The winner will be announced on Jan. 9 in Zurich, Switzerland.

If Messi wins the award for the third time, he will join former France midfielder Michel Platini, and former Netherlands greats Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten as three-time Golden Ball winners.

The 24-year-old Messi scored in the 3-1 win over Manchester United in last season's Champions League final.

Real Madrid's Jose Mourinho, Manchester United's Alex Ferguson and Barcelona's Pep Guardiola are in the running for best coach.

Messi hailed Guardiola's influence and the way he has modernized the club.
"His leadership is so important to us, not just in the day-to-day but in the way he prepares games and keeps us motivated,'' Messi said on FIFA's website. "His attention to detail also makes a huge difference. When he came in, for example, he decided that we should start having lunch at the club and that the doctors and our (physiotherapist) should keep a closer eye on us.''

Madrid currently leads the Spanish league ahead of Barcelona, but last season Mourinho was powerless to stop the Catalans from dominating Europe. Barcelona beat Madrid 3-1 over two legs in the Champions League semifinals, with Messi scoring twice in Madrid. Ronaldo failed to score and cut a downcast figure as he was totally outshone by Messi.

Messi, Neymar and Wayne Rooney are shortlisted for the best goal award.

My money is on Messi to win since he's the best player on the best team. Plus, he's coming off the best season. Ronaldo and Xavi (in that order) are worthy choices too but it just feels like Messi's resume is better and it's his time to win, again.

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Does Anybody Want To Coach Argentina?

For a country that boasts the world's best player (Lionel Messi) and another one of the best goal-scorers on Earth (Carlos Tevez), Argentina sure knows how to burn through its national team coaches in record time.

By virtue of winning one game in the 2011 Copa America tournament (eventually won by Uruguay 3-0 over Paraguay yesterday), Sergio Batista was shown the door after only one year on the job.

Moving on from the bat shit crazy Diego Maradona was a logical decision but replacing him with basically a low-rent version did not work out at all.

Batista, who took over a year ago, was Argentina's fourth coach in five years and had the same problem as his predecessor Diego Maradona: little tactical experience and an inability to get superstars to play as a team rather than as individuals.

Alejandro Sabella, former coach of Argentine club Estudiantes, and Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino -- an Argentine -- are seen as the favorites to replace him. Also being mentioned as a successor is former Boca Juniors and Atletico de Madrid coach Carlos Bianchi.

Maybe it will take an outsider to help Argentina morph from a group of stars into a star-powered team. There's no reason why they can't be one of the top squads in every competition they play in. They have way too much talent to be this inconsistent. This non-stop coaching carousel probably isn't helping their chemistry either so we won't hold our breath that it will be any different with the next skipper.

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U.S. draw 1-1 with Argentina at New Meadowlands

Before tonight, I can honestly say I had no idea who Juan Agudelo was. He had scored his first goal for the U.S. men's national team in November against South Africa but that totally slipped my mind.

Only time will tell if he can ever develop into a superstar but for one night, he can claim that he scored a goal in a game that Lionel Messi-the best player in the world-was held off the scoresheet.

The U.S. men's national team played a great second half and Agudelo-an 18-year-old striker that plays for the New York Red Bulls-had the equalizer as the Americans came away with a very satisfying 1-1 tie with Argentina.

Argentina came to the New Meadowlands tonight for an international friendly vs. the United States and for the first 45 minutes, I think Bob Bradley's team touched the ball about five times total (that might be a slight exaggeration). Still, Argentina didn't find the back of the net until Esteban Cambiasso scored in the 42nd minute.

Tim Howard made the initial save but Cambiasso was the first one to collect the rebound and blast it top shelf.

Agudelo will rightfully be remembered as the Man of the Match for the U.S. but anybody who watched the game can easily make the case that Howard had the best game of anybody on either team. For all the frustrating aspects of the U.S. team: coaching style, lack of attacking talent, creativity, etc., we can always bank on the fact that we have one of the greatest goalkeepers in the world.

Messi had a few great chances but each time, Howard stuffed him, he shot wide or over. It's so rare to see a team as talented as Argentina on our shores and that's why this had a great atmosphere with a sold-out crowd of 78,936 enjoying what seemed more like a World Cup match.

After looking so overmatched in the first half by the possession and composure of Argentina (two things they lacked against Germany in last summer's World Cup exit), the U.S. responded with an outstanding final 45 minutes.

I absolutely despise having Jozy Altidore play as the lone striker but I understand, there's not many options to partner with him. Still, Bob Bradley has to realize that Jozy doesn't have the holding ability to wait for teammates to pass to. Too often tonight, he tried to take on multiple Argentine defenders with predictable results (turnovers).

Agudelo started the second half and right away, he seemed to get into the flow of the game. His goal came in the 59th minute off a Landon Donovan free kick from way outside the box. Donovan served a perfect ball (a rarity), Carlos Bocanegra flicked it on, forcing Mariano Andujar to make a save. The ball popped loose and Agudelo was there to clean it up and put it in. Truly a special moment for such a young guy, in front of many of his home fans in only his third cap for the U.S.

No goals for Messi but he was a force as always. He started the Argentine goal by keeping the ball alive along the goal-line before laying it in front. As Ian Drake said during the game, if you like soccer you could watch Messi play all day. He's that good, just a special talent that has otherworldly foot skills and feel for the game.

The U.S. will face Paraguay (who lost 3-1 to Mexico today in Oakland) on Tuesday night in Nashville. That game will no doubt lack the atmosphere and buzz of the Argentina so expect a letdown of some sort.

Apologize for the lack of posts

Our apologies for the lack of posts recently. With our jobs taking up much of our time and real life stuff to deal with, we haven't been posting at all lately.

With a day off from work and snow limiting my options of things to do, I thought I'd whip through some things we haven't touched on.

To sum up the important stuff we missed lately: Messi won men's player of the year (again), Marta won women's player of the year, Jose Mourinho was coach of the year, David Beckham is training with Tottenham, Ronaldinho has gone home to Flamengo (a Brazilian club), Oguchi Onyewu is with Dutch league champion Twente (on loan from AC Milan) and Edson Buddle is going to Ingolstadt (a second-tier German team).

Finally, Liverpool (Roy Hodgson out, Kenny Dalglish in) and Inter Milan (Rafael Benitez out, Leonardo in) got rid of their head coaches and hired new ones.

Good day to be a Barcelona fan

It seems too good to be true (assuming you're a Barcelona fan) but their superstar trio of Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi Alonso have all been nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or award, with the winner to be crowned the world's best player in 2010.

The FIFA Ballon d'Or combines the two major player prizes - the FIFA World Player of the year, voted for by players and coaches, and the Ballon d'Or, which was handed out by journalists via France Football magazine - for the first time next month.

Messi picked up both awards last year but is the outsider to claim it again in Zurich on January 10 despite a phenomenal 12 months. He netted 34 goals in Barca's 2009-10 La Liga success while he has started the new season in blistering scoring form claiming 22 goals in just 18 games - with 19 of those coming in his last 12 appearances.

The only blemish for the diminutive playmaker was a goalless World Cup for Argentina, as Diego Maradona's side exited at the quarter-final stage to Germany. That is the main reason why the award is likely to go to one of Spain's world champions.

In contention to usurp Messi as the world's best player are his club team-mates Xavi and Iniesta - who are joint favourites to win the award. The midfielders have enjoyed a wonderful year at both domestic and international level, having triumphed in the Primera Division with Barca and the World Cup with Spain.

Any award ceremony and nomination list is never complete without some tough omissions and this one is no different in that regard. Um Wesley Sneijder anybody?

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti criticised the absence of Inter and Holland midfielder Wesley Sneijder from the shortlist. Sneijder was widely regarded as Inter's best player in their treble-winning season and also impressed as the Dutch reached the World Cup final.

''I find it very unfair,'' Moratti said on Inter's official website. ''Sneijder had a phenomenal year, won everything he could have won. For me he deserved the Ballon d'Or. It seems unfair the award is to be given to someone who, although a great player, didn't have the same level of performance throughout the year.''

For the women, take your pick between Marta (the Brazilian who has won it four times) or the German duo of Fatmire Bajramaj and Birgit Prinz.

Barca's Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, who won an unprecedented Serie A, Coppa Italia and Champions League treble with Inter Milan before switching to Real Madrid in the summer, and Spain's World Cup-winning coach Vicente del Bosque were the choices for the male Coach of the Year award.

Maren Meinert (Germany Under-20 national team), Silvia Neid (Germany national team) and Pia Sundhage (United States national team) make up the women's category.

Messi wins the Golden Boot

Even if you didn't know anything about soccer, if you watched Lionel Messi for five minutes, you could tell that he is not your average player.

He is truly one of the special ones now and that we'll ever see in our lifetimes so enjoy every moment that the Argentina and Barcelona star delivers to us.

Today, Messi won the Golden Boot, given to top scorer in European domestic leagues last season.

The Argentine forward received the prize Thursday after scoring 34 league goals to help Barcelona retain its Spanish La Liga title.

Messi joined Marco van Basten, Ronaldo and Cristiano Ronaldo as the only players to win the three major individual awards: the Golden Boot, FIFA Player of the Year and the Golden Ball, given to Europe's top player.

Chelsea's Didier Drogba and Udinese's Antonio di Natale were tied for second place with 29 goals apiece.

Luis Suarez scored 35 goals last season for Ajax in the Netherlands but failed to win due to the points system that compensates for the degree of difficulty posed by the major European leagues: England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.

Messi had failed to score a single goal at the World Cup in South Africa. Even so, former Argentina coach Diego Maradona said Wednesday that Messi deserved the award and hoped he would "win many more."

Messi is the second Barcelona player to be honored by European Sports Magazine. Ronaldo earned the club's first Golden Boot by scoring 34 goals in the 1996-97 season.

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol applauded Messi's ability and character.

"He is the best in the world, but he is humble. He improves every day," Puyol said before the awards ceremony. "He is the best player in the world and he demonstrated that he deserves this award."

Messi has scored two goals in three games in the Spanish league this season.

He turned 23 this summer so fingers crossed, this will be the first of many Golden Boots for our main man.

Everybody can breath a little easier now

Well the bad news is that the world's greatest soccer player will miss a few games.

And the good news is that it could have been much worse for Barcelona and Argentina superstar Lionel Messi who damaged ligaments in his right ankle on Sunday.

Lionel Messi will miss at least two games after damaging ligaments in his right ankle during Barcelona's 2-1 win at Atletico Madrid.

Barcelona says medical exams performed Monday on the Argentine star's ankle ruled out any fracture, as expected.

Messi will miss Spanish league matches against Sporting Gijon on Wednesday and Athletic Bilbao three days later. Barcelona plays Rubin Kazan in a Champions League match Sept. 29.

The 23-year-old world player of the year has scored seven goals in six games this season. He was injured after a challenge from Atletico defender Tomas Ujfalusi during extra time of Sunday's game.

You have to believe Barcelona's training staff won't let their franchise risk anymore injury, especially in a Champions League game that they should roll in even if I was starting over Messi.

Messi, Tevez, Higuain and Co. coming to America (sort of)

It is fitting that a day after Messi scored two brilliant goals for Barcelona in a Champions League win, comes the news that his national team (Argentina) could be playing a pair of exhibition games in the U.S. in March.

Henry Cardenas, whose Cardenas Marketing Network announced a partnership in February with the Argentine Football Association, will meet next week with officials of the U.S. Soccer Federation and Mexico Football Federation. He hopes to arrange games for March 24 and March 28, which is during a FIFA fixture window.

"Nothing has been finalized," Cardenas said Wednesday. "We would love to play the United States and Mexico. If not, it could be Canada."

With Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez, Gonzalo Higuain and Javier Mascherano, the Albiceleste are among international soccer's top attractions.

Cardenas said several sites for the games were under consideration, but the East Coast was less likely because of cool March weather.

Argentina last played against the U.S. in an exhibition at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., drawing 78,682 for a 0-0 tie on June 8, 2008.

Argentina will be preparing to host the Copa America, South America's championship, from July 3-24.

Clearly given the timing, don't expect Argentina to come to Gillette. If they do show up in the States, you can bank on the fact that it will most likely be in California, Floria and or Texas. Those are my best guesses of places that could accomidate such a big event.

Messi reminds you that he's still got it

He still hasn't scored a goal in the 2010 World Cup but Lionel Messi deserves much better. He just dangled around three Mexican defenders and forced a save from Perez.

Tevez scores even though he's offside

Oh brother, can we get instant replay going before tomorrow's matches?

Carlos Tevez just scored for Argentina in the 26th minute and he was offside by a couple feet. Messi fed him and after his first touch was saved by Perez, Messi fed him again and Tevez headed it in.

1-0 Argentina in the 29th minute. Mexico just picked up a frustration yellow card by Marquez, who had a rough tackle on his Barcelona teammate Messi.

Understandably after the goal, Mexico circled the refs and freaked out. What a mess.

Poor Messi can't buy a goal

It's not going out on a limb to say that Lionel Messi will score a goal in the 2010 World Cup, but at the moment he's mighty snakebitten.

He just turned a couple Greek defenders but his rocket went off the left post and bounced out.

1-0 Argentina in the 87th minute.

2-2 Nigeria-South Korea in the 87th minute.

Argentina sniffs a goal

The world's greatest player, Lionel Messi, almost opened the scoring in this snoozefest between Argentina and Greece. His free kick from about 35 yards was hit without a ton of power but plenty of bend. Greece's goalkeeper Alexandros Tzorvas made a nice diving stop on it.

Off the corner, Tzorvas made an even better save on midfielder Mario Bolatti, who truthfully should have placed it rather than just crush it into the goalie's stomach.

0-0 in the 73rd minute.

Unreal

Messi and Milito work a 1-2 in the box that leaves Messi free with the goalie but a defender knocks it out before he can put it on goal.

Argentina is just playing keep away now which no surprise they're pretty good at.

Four minutes of stoppage time, we're in the 92nd minute. 1-0 Argentina.

Martins almost ties it

Obafemi Martins made a run down the center of Argentina's defense and blasted a shot from about 30 yards out forcing Sergio Romero's first save of the match.

Another Argentina substitute: Higuain out, Diego Milito in. You know you're loaded when one of the best goal scorers in the world (see: Inter Milan) is coming off the bench.

And Messi works a pretty 1-2 with Di Maria but once again Enyeama is equal to the task.

Back and forth action, Nigeria has its best chance as Yakubu Aiyegbeni crosses perfectly to an unmarked Uche. He sidefoots it over the bar, it should be 1-1.

1-0 Argentina hanging on in the 85th minute.

Hammer don't hurt 'em!

Carlos Tevez and Argentina almost drew the curtains on Nigeria with a 4-on-2 break in the 66th minute.

He dropped it off to Messi (always a good choice, albeit a little late) and Messi hit it just wide with his favored left foot.

Nigeria had a counterattack but nothing came of it then Higuain forced a quality save by Enyeama.

End to end action, love it.

1-0 Argentina in the 68th minute.

If you don't think Messi's cool, you've probably got a big dump in your pants

It's only a matter of time before Lionel Messi, the best player in the world, finds the scoresheet.

He just had a standard cutback and shot ticketed for the top corner in the 37th minute that was deflected out for a corner by Nigerian goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama.

I wish I had put some money on Messi to lead the tournament in goals, haha although those odds were probably like 10/9 or something shitty.

1-0 Argentina in the 41st minute.