Argentina’s Lionel Messi snapped an eight-year FIFA World Cup goal drought on Sunday as he lit up the Estadio do Maracana with a brilliant strike, but his side still had to battle hard to get a 2-1 win over debutants Bosnia-Herzegovina in their opening Group F match.
Messi, a four-time FIFA world player of the year deemed Argentina’s best player since Diego Maradona graced the 1986 tournament, put his side 2-0 ahead on a night when the stadium was turned into little Buenos Aires by tens of thousands of his countrymen.
“It was important to start with a win and to get three points but we need to improve,” man-of-the-match Messi told reporters.
Photo: Reuters
Although they took the lead in the third minute when Sead Kolasinac netted the fastest own-goal in World Cup history, Argentina looked unconvincing until Messi struck with a dazzling run and sweet left-foot shot that went in off the post in the 65th minute after a one-two with substitute Gonzalo Higuain.
It was the Barcelona striker’s first goal in the finals since scoring in Argentina’s 6-0 win over Serbia and Montenegro almost eight years ago to the day. Yet even after that, Argentina could not afford to relax, with Bosnia substitute Vedad Ibisevic scoring in the 85th minute to set up a tense finale in Rio de Janeiro.
“They were two different halves,” Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella told a news conference. “In the first one I think we controlled the Bosnians well, but beyond that, we didn’t create the kind of depth that we managed in the second half. Obviously we need to improve.”
Photo: Reuters
Despite the loss, Bosnia coach Safet Susic said that “the objective was to play as well as we can against Argentina, who are the favorites to win the World Cup, and I think we played a good match.”
“We played well in both halves and it was only because of the psychological pressure that we looked as if we had run out of steam a little bit in the closing stages,” he added.
The match was the first of the tournament played at the Maracana, which yesterday marked the 64th anniversary of its official opening at the start of the 1950 World Cup.
Photo: AFP
The match began dramatically when Kolasinac put through his own net after two minutes and eight seconds, beating the previous unwanted record set by Paraguay’s Carlos Gamarra against England in 2006 by 38 seconds.
He was in the wrong place when a Messi free-kick, headed on by Marcos Rojo, hit him and went in.
Bosnia, though naturally shaken after making such an inauspicious start to their first-ever match in the finals, did not dwell on their misfortune for long.
After surviving a nervy spell, they rallied and began to look the better side against a subdued Argentina who were in danger of losing their record of winning their opening match in their past five World Cups.
Messi, whose tepid displays in the last World Cup in South Africa — where he failed to find the net once — were exhaustively documented, made little impression until his goal and Bosnia had their chances with both Senad Lulic and Edin Dzeko going close in the first half.
Substitute Ibisevic earned a place in Bosnian soccer history by scoring their first World Cup goal when he placed his angled shot through Sergio Romero’s legs, but it was too little too late.
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