"Lahoz is useless", Emiliano Martinez slams referee after Argentina win on penalties

Martinez saved two penalties as

beat the

4-3 on penalties in a tense match on Saturday to reach the semifinal.

After the match, Martinez described the referee Mateu Lahoz as "useless" and dedicated this victory to the people of Argentina.

"The referee is useless. Hopefully, we don't have that referee anymore,"

Martinez said.

"The first thing that comes to mind is emotion,"

he added.

 "I do this for 45 million people. To give people such joy is the biggest thing right now. We are in the semi-final because we have passion and heart. We are excited, as are the people."

Lautaro Martinez who scored the final penalty for Argentina said he thought about his daughter when he wanted to take his penalty.

"On that walk to the point of the penalty, I was very calm because I trust my work. When I caught the ball, I thought about my daughter. She changed my life."

Argentina midfielder Rodrigo de Paul also said he is excited for the semifinal clash against Croatia.

"I'm excited because I work hard to make these things happen,"

the midfielder said.

 "Playing a

semi-final is not an everyday occurrence.

"The idea was to come the first day and leave on the last day. We rose from a defeat at the beginning. Hopefully, these moments that are incredible keep coming. I tell people to enjoy it because this belongs to everyone."

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