A sportsmanship controversy has erupted at the World Cup after Argentina’s victorious stars were seen laughing in the faces of their devastated Dutch opponents on Sunday morning (AEDT).
A handful of Argentinian’s ran right up to the Netherlands players and screamed right in their faces after star striker Lautaro Martinez netted the winning goal of the penalty shootout.
Images of the moment quickly went viral with experts and fans both saying it was a clear indication of Argentina’s lack of sportsmanship and respect for their opponents.
However given the spiteful nature of the clash, which included a couple of bench-clearing melees, it wasn’t all that surprising that it ended on a sour note.
The ecstasy of the Argentinians was in direct contrast to the devastation of the Dutch, who could be seen collapsing to the ground in tears.
It was truly painful to witness their heartache, however Argentinian defender Nicolas Otamendi, who was right at the front of the queue teasing the Dutch, said the moment was taken out of context and was completely instigated by his opponents.
“I celebrated in their face because there was a one Netherlands player, who at every penalty kick we had, was coming and saying things to one of our players,” Otamendi said.
The picture was taken out of context, and we celebrated in response to it.”
While it is unclear exactly which Dutch player Otamendi was referring to, a number of fans said it was most likely Denzel Dumfries, who ended up being red-carded following the shootout for “losing his head”.
The live TV broadcast failed to capture the shocking moment Dumfries was seen walking up to the celebrating huddle of Argentine players and appearing to exchange more heated words before he was moved on.
Meanwhile, Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal said his team’s loss to Argentina on penalties was “incredibly painful”.
“We failed to score the first two penalties so that’s when things become really hard and tough. It is a matter of being lucky, a lottery,” said Van Gaal.
The 71-year-old was also coach of the Netherlands when they were beaten on penalties by Argentina in the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup.
“This is the second time we lost to Argentina this way. Two World Cups with the same coach for the Netherlands,” he said.
“I asked the players to train and to practise penalties, so I have nothing to reproach them for. To come back and equalise… to lose on penalties is unfortunate.” V
Van Gaal returned for a third spell in charge in August 2021 after undergoing treatment for aggressive prostate cancer.
The Oranje are unbeaten in 20 games under Van Gaal, including Saturday’s match, but he confirmed he would be stepping down from the job as planned.
“The boys are feeling despondent. They gave everything and I’m incredibly proud. I had a wonderful time,” he said.
“It is incredibly painful to see how we’ve been eliminated because I did everything I could to prevent this.”
– with foxsports.com.au
