The entire NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas gasped.
The whistle blew and Lionel Messi moved towards the ball. Messi swung his famous left foot down at the ball… and chose a Panenka-style penalty to give his side the lead in the shootout.
Except he didn’t.
The Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez dived to his left but the ball hit the crossbar and set in motion a shootout that had it all — including the now customary Emiliano Martinez antics that helped the Copa America holders win 4-2 on penalties to advance to the semi-final.
Argentina had played arguably their worst game of the Lionel Scaloni era but Lisandro Martinez’s goal looked to be taking them through until Kevin Rodriguez’s equalizer in second-half stoppage time made it 1-1. That took the game to extra time — Ecuador’s Enner Valencia had missed from 12 yards in normal time — and then penalties.
As he had in 2016, Messi was tasked with giving his country a crucial lead in the shootout. Eight years ago in the final in New Jersey, Messi missed too and Chile won that shootout 4-2. Messi then retired from international football, before performing a U-turn two months later.
The Panenka in Texas did not prove as costly as that miss in 2016 — and the 37-year-old is back on track to add to his Copa America 2021 title.
This is the story of a shootout that had it all.
As the two teams waited for the penalties to start, it was clear the momentum had shifted to Ecuador. Felix Sanchez, their Spanish head coach, stood arm-in-arm with his players in a tight circle. Many of them bounced with adrenaline and confidence from how the game had finished. Ecuador had equalized in stoppage time and nearly scored a winner with seconds left to play.
The game felt in their grasp.
Twenty yards away, Argentina’s field players stood on the halfway line awaiting the start of the shootout. Their substitutes on the bench stood nervously along the touchline. There was very little talking. A few players looked down at the ground. Argentina’s staff joined the players, but Scaloni stood alone — just as he had before the shootout in the World Cup final against France two years ago, which Argentina won. He put his hands behind his back then inside the pockets of his track pants. Then ran his fingers through his hair.
There was a sort of stunned murmur going through the crowd of 69,456 at NRG Stadium, the vast majority of which wore the sky blue and white of Argentina. Many of them were seated with concerned looks on their faces. Ecuador’s fans were waving their nation’s flag excitedly.
Then ‘Dibu’ Martinez started walking toward the that he would defend. He waved his arm in the air and the crowd sprung to their feet and roared. He waved his arm more. The fervor grew. “Dibuuuuuu,” they shouted in unison.
This was his stage and everyone knew it.
Martinez’s presence in net had already contributed to one missed penalty. Enner Valencia’s poor effort in the 62nd minute was seemingly predicated on watching what Martinez was going to do. The Aston Villa goalkeeper earned his reputation as an elite penalty stopper at the World Cup two years ago. In Houston, the mental games were once again at play. He was jumping up and down and reaching up to the crossbar, drawing attention to his size.
(Juan Mabromata/AFP via Getty Images)
As Martinez dove one way, Valencia’s penalty rolled weakly off his foot, hit the left post and bounced out.
(Juan Mabromata/AFP via Getty Images)
The crowd roared. It wasn’t a save, but there was little doubt Martinez’s presence had an impact.
(Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images)
If Argentina was going to advance to the semi-final, they knew their hopes rested with one man. Usually, that man is Messi. This stage, however, belongs to Martinez. Even as Messi walked toward the spot for the first penalty, the crowd knew only one player could propel them to the next round.
“I work on this, I dive 500 times in each training session,” Martinez said after the game. “We have to give everything, because the people (of Argentina) deserve it.”
In just a few minutes, they would realize just how important Martinez was to their hopes.
“We have an animal in goal,” Rodrigo De Paul would say when it was all said and done.
Every penalty from the Argentina-Ecuador shootout ✅
Relive every moment ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/LuruLOulb9
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 5, 2024
Argentina 0-0 Ecuador on penalties
Messi walked to the spot and set up to take his penalty well before the Ecuador goalkeeper Dominguez even got to the 18-yard box. Messi had a plan.
He told reporters after the match that he had decided to take a Panenka penalty before that long walk. He consulted with Martinez and Argentina’s backup goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, who assured Messi was the right decision.
A Panenka is considered a risky yet artful penalty. Named after Czechoslovakian footballer Antonin Panenka, instead of striking the ball with pace, the player lightly chips the ball down the middle of the goal knowing that the goalkeeper will likely dive towards a corner in anticipation. At the 1976 European Championship final against West Germany, Panenka deceived German goalkeeper Sepp Maier with a never-before-seen penalty.
(Logan Riely/Getty Images)
Messi’s chip was hit with slightly too much power. It hit the crossbar and settled on top of the net. Messi put his hands to his face as he walked back toward midfield.
Video for UK readers:
Messi misses the first penalty of the shootout! 😱😱
Incredible scenes 🤯 pic.twitter.com/g6wtxmctDR
— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) July 5, 2024
Video for U.S. readers:
MESSI MISSES THE PENALTY 😱
🇦🇷: ❌
🇪🇨: pic.twitter.com/KYzkyywBQu— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 5, 2024
Ecuador’s pre-shootout momentum raised another level.
Argentina 0-0 Ecuador
There are mind games and then there is Martinez. It is less s***housery and more art. It is a Van Gogh painting by the side of a pond in Giverny.
Imagine nearly 70,000 people trying to compute what they have just witnessed. Messi. A Panenka. A crossbar. But then there is Martinez. He is unaffected. He has work to do. He walked toward the ball, picked it up and kissed it. He went back into goal and bounced on his toes.
The show was only really starting now.
Martinez stretched his arms out and bounced back and forth, off his left foot and then off his right.
Angel Mena stepped back and took a breath. He pinged a ball to the right side of goal, but Martinez guessed that way and, with both hands, parried the ball away.
(Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images)
He ran down the end line, jumped into the air and pumped his fist as he landed.
Then he turned back toward midfield, lifted his arm in the air and gestured toward Messi. “I’ve got you,” he seemed to say.
Messi raised his arm back in acknowledgement.
“I saw him,” Messi said. “He knew I was very upset for missing my penalty. And honestly, having ‘El Dibu’ is very reassuring. We don’t want to get to this stage of a game, but having him gives us a lot of confidence.”
Argentina 1-0 Ecuador
Martinez’s save had sent Argentina’s supporters into euphoric celebrations. One gentleman wearing an Argentina jersey and a blue and white bucket hat used a throat-slash gesture and said, “Se acabo,” — ‘It’s over’ — as Julian Alvarez prepared to take his penalty. Alvarez hadn’t started the match — Scaloni chose in-form striker Lautaro Martinez instead — but the Manchester City striker showed no signs of rust.
(Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
He calmly put his penalty into the right corner just past the outstretched Dominguez and into the top right corner of the goal. A hard penalty to execute but he nailed it.
Argentina 1-0 Ecuador
Now Martinez had a lead to work with. He turned back to the crowd and amped them up again.
In the stands, the Ecuadorian fans clenched their hands together in prayer. The team had played so well. They deserved a result.
Alan Minda moved toward the ball and Martinez took one jab step with his left foot. Maybe it sent a signal to Minda.
But Martinez didn’t move left. He planted that left foot and dived to his right, lifting his trailing arm to block Minda’s shot with a strong left hand.
(Gustavo Pagano/Getty Images)
The crowd roared and Martinez turned toward the fans behind his goal, shook his hips and backside, his signature dance, and put his hands to his ears. As he walked toward the end line, he kissed his index finger and raised it above his head, then screamed up in the air.
(Logan Riely/Getty Images)
Whatever confidence Ecuador had at the start of this shootout was gone.
A pro-Argentina crowd that once had a pit in their collective stomach now screamed in unison.
Argentina 2-0 Ecuador
Up stepped Alexis Mac Allister.
There were no signs of nerves from the Liverpool midfielder. He was the epitome of cool as he slotted his penalty into the right side-netting. Mac Allister was clever in that he showed no signs of where he would go before his strike.
(Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
Argentina 2-1 Ecuador
Martinez’s antics can only do so much. On the third kick, he forgets to give the ball a kiss. He does pick it up and walks with it for a few steps before tossing it back toward the spot. Instead, it’s John Yeboah, the German-born winger, who smashes a shot into the upper corner.
It finally gives the Ecuador fans something to cheer about.
Argentina 3-1 Ecuador
Gonzalo Montiel had been brought on as a substitute as soon as the official review determined that Ecuador’s equalizer would stand.
He had been in this position before, taking the fourth penalty for Argentina. On a slightly bigger stage though: the 2022 World Cup final. It was the right-back who won the trophy with the decisive finish in Qatar. That shot went to the left. Perhaps for that reason, that’s where Dominguez dived, but Montiel read the ‘keeper and slotted his shot to the opposite side.
Argentina were now one goal, or one save, away from victory and a place in the Copa America semi-finals.
Argentina 3-2 Ecuador
On the previous two Ecuador penalties, Martinez picked up the ball and walked toward his own goal before throwing it behind him toward the penalty spot. Not this time. The stakes are too high. This time, Martinez threw the ball to his left. Jordy Caicedo was going to have to go and get it.
That was the final straw for the Uruguayan referee Andres Matonte, and he gave Martinez a stern warning. The goalkeeper didn’t move, just nodded. Caicedo probably should have won the game for Ecuador in the game’s dying minutes but his glancing header went wide. Here, the margins are in his favor. He went down the middle, slightly left of centre, and although Martinez dived the right way, he couldn’t get a foot to it.
Despite the goalkeeper’s success already in the shootout, he is furious not to stop Caicedo’s effort — and his reaction shows it as he bunches up into a ball near the goal line as Caicedo celebrates.
Argentina 4-2 Ecuador
The Argentina central defender Nicolas Otamendi had come on as a substitute in the 78th minute. He replaced Manchester United’s Martinez as Scaloni sought to repel Ecuador’s hopeful balls into the penalty area. Otamendi was tasked with taking his side’s fifth and decisive penalty. Typically, central defenders don’t provide much assurance from the spot, but Otamendi debunked the theory.
“I had faith in myself,” he said. “Scaloni had assigned me a penalty and I’m very happy to have helped the team. We have a beast in goal whose saves helped, as well. It’s true that taking the fifth penalty is difficult. I had luck on my side.”
He stepped up and slid a shot into the bottom left corner of the goal, giving the Ecuador goalkeeper Dominguez no chance.
Otamendi, 36, should give himself more credit — it was well-taken and a deserved reward for the veteran defender.
(Juan Mabromata/AFP via Getty Images)
When Otamendi’s shot rippled the net, the players around Messi embraced him tightly. It was a similar scene two years ago after Montiel’s winning penalty against France in the World Cup final.
Messi’s team-mates remain devoted to him. They know that this is his last Copa America. The defending champions escaped Houston and will travel back to New Jersey for a semi-final against either Venezuela or Canada on July 9.
“I wasn’t ready to go home,” said an emotional Emiliano Martinez. “This group deserves to continue.”
In the mixed zone, Martinez added that he remembered Messi’s penalty miss against Chile in 2016. He wanted to make sure the team was there to lift him up.
“He won the World Cup on his own,” Martinez said. “It gave me a feeling like he deserves that (this time), we help him.”
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Video for U.S. readers:
(Top photos: Getty Images)
