Enzo Fernandez SENT OFF in World Cup final for Argentina – as Wayne Rooney hits out at Chelsea midfielder for ‘silly’ challenge
Enzo Fernandez received a red card in the 93rd minute of Argentina’s 1-0 defeat to Spain in the World Cup final.
The Chelsea midfielder received a second yellow card for a late tackle on Spanish defender Pau Cubarsi on the halfway line and was sent off minutes before the end of extra time.
Like his teammates Lionel Messi and Facundo Medina, he vehemently protested his innocence, but it was difficult to argue against referee Slavko Vincic’s decision. Cubarsi flew into the air after the foul.
Wayne Rooney said on the BBC: ‘It’s a stupid tackle. It’s a little late for this. You can’t just swing your leg on a yellow card. This makes it a very different game now.’
Fernandez’s dismissal capped a miserable 90 minutes for the 2022 champions, who had no shots compared to Spain’s 15 minutes.
Teammate Leandro Paredes was perhaps lucky to avoid a second yellow for a foul on the edge of the penalty area as he continued the Argentine’s poor style of play.
Enzo Fernandez was sent off in the 93rd minute for a very late challenge on Pau Cubarsi.
The midfielder was stubborn enough to complain about being given a second yellow card, but he didn’t have much of a leg to stand on.
Lamine Yamal tested goalkeeper Lisandro Martinez from a free-kick but La Albiceleste kept pushing for another 30 minutes at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Messi, who has eight goals in the World Cup, was largely anonymous during normal time.
Fernandez proved to be an important player in the heart of midfield for Lionel Scalino throughout the season.
The 25-year-old ironically scored a 93rd-minute winner in the last 16 against Egypt and equalized for Argentina against England in the semi-final.
Spain burst out of the blocks in extra time and substitute Nico Williams thought he had put Spain ahead after the restart, but the goal was disallowed due to a questionable foul on Nicolas Otamendi.
After this, fans in the stadium started chanting ‘Infantino’, thinking that the FIFA president had rigged the tournament in Argentina’s favour.
However, in the 106th minute, Spain finally took the lead and won when Ferran Torres ran towards Williams and put the ball into the net.
The last time Argentina had a player sent off in a World Cup final was in 1990, when two of their players were ordered to march.
Pedro Monzon and Gustavo Dezotti played in the 1-0 defeat to West Germany that day.
