Argentina star Nico Gonzalez has rubbished talk of his team intentionally performing poorly in the FIFA World Cup final against Spain. La Albiceleste fell to a 1-0 defeat in New York on Sunday, failing in their bid to win back-to-back World Cup titles.
Gonzalez spoke to reporters back in Argentina after the team returned to the country following their defeat in New York. He pointed out that it was just football and did not require so much conspiracies, as the team gave their best but ultimately fell short.
Nico Gonzalez started for La Albiceleste in the FIFA World Cup final, playing on the left wing. The Atletico Madrid man played for just 45 minutes before coach Lionel Scaloni decided to change him, sending on Leandro Paredes in his place for the remainder of the clash.
Scaloni's side struggled in the game against Spain, having less than 40% of the ball and recording no shots on target over 120 minutes. Argentina's performance led to speculation on social media that they had been instructed to lose the game. Firstly Argentine legend Mario Kempes, and now Gonzalez have argued against the notion, putting the performance down as a bad game.
Argentina international Nicolas Otamendi has announced his retirement from international football after his country's FIFA World Cup final defeat. The 38-year-old defender has brought his international career, which has lasted for 17 years, to an end, as planned.
Otamendi played 139 times for Argentina, featuring in three editions of the FIFA World Cup, and scored eight goals for his country. He made his debut for La Albiceleste in 2009 and won the World Cup in 2022, as well as the Copa America in 2021 and 2024.
Nicolas Otamendi appeared seven times in the USA this summer, starting only in the dead-rubber group stage game against Jordan. He came on in the first half of the final following an injury to Lisandro Martinez, and nearly helped his side keep an unlikely clean sheet against Spain. The defender recently ended his time in Europe, leaving Benfica to sign for River Plate this summer.
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