World Cup 2022: Lionel Messi will give Argentina special advantage, states Nicolas Tagliafico

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Lionel Messi gives Argentina a "special advantage", reckons Argentina defender Nicolas Tagliafico, as Los Albicelestes prepare their World Cup semifinal clash against Croatia.

Argentina have reached their second semifinal in three World Cups, overcoming their opening game loss at the hands of Saudi Arabia.

Lionel Messi has been instrumental for the Latin American nation this year, scoring 4 goals so far and playing a pivotal part in their campaign thus far. He has won almost all the trophies in his career and would love to sign off with the biggest prize of a footballer's career. They are a couple of matches away from the elusive gold and Tagliafico says Messi will be crucial for them in those matches.

Tagliafico credited the veteran forward as the driving factor both for and behind their run to within 90 minutes of the final, stating he fires his teammates on to greater heights.

Tagliafico on Lionel Messi:

"He's always been like this. For us, he is our captain, our leader, the one who pushes us and motivates us. He's the one who has that special advantage," Tagliafico said.

"When we are on the pitch, we know we have Messi. We are so happy to have him as our captain. That's the most beautiful thing, to do this with Messi by our side.

"This World Cup, we have enough experience to reach this stage. We know in the knockouts, there'll be a few moments where we will struggle. We have the experience. We need to have enough character to go through all that and overcome it. That motivates you even further," he added.

Penalties were required to see Argentina through their quarter-final clash with the Netherlands, in what devolved into a bad-tempered affair from both sets of players. Argentina players behavior was not up to the mark, and even their captain Lionel Messi was way out of line.

Scaloni's men were accused of being poor winners after their victory, but the defender says they may repeat the same action in the coming matches.

"Those situations happen in the world of football. We are not machines. The emotions were running high. It has happened in previous matches," Tagliafico continued.

"It will likely happen again. This was a World Cup quarter-final, with two teams fighting it out. We tried to live it as such," Tagliafico concluded.

(with input from Omnisport)