Lionel Messi Opens Up on Emi Martinez’s Save From Kolo Muani at World Cup Final

• Argentina won the World Cup in Qatar, beating France on penalties in the final
• The game was one of the greatest football matches ever played in a major tournament final
• Messi has described his emotions on one of the highlights of the final minutes

Lionel Messi has reflected on the 2022 FIFA World Cup final, describing his emotions on some of the highlights of arguably the best football game ever played.

Messi led Argentina to the World Cup triumph in Qatar, putting behind the disappointment of the opening game loss to Saudi Arabia to defeat France in the final.

He scored seven goals, including two in the final. He provided three assists to win the only trophy eluding his career, his country's first since the Diego Maradona-inspired victory in 1986.

Messi reflects on Martinez Muani face-off

Argentina were 10 minutes away from winning the game in 90 minutes before Kylian Mbappe scored twice. The game went into extra time and could have gone the way of both sides.

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Messi scored Argentina's third, but Mbappe equalised again. Randal Kolo Muani had the chance to win it with 15 seconds to go, but Emiliano Martinez made a brilliant save.

The captain has now opened up on his emotions to L'equipe, as quoted by AlbicelesteTalk.

“Emi’s save... It happened very quickly, and I was not able to see it well, especially since we returned to playing quickly,” he said.

The Aston Villa goalkeeper saved two penalties in the shootout before Gonzalo Montiel converted the winning penalty. On Montiel's penalty, he said:

“A thousand things occurred to me in my head. It's difficult to explain my feeling at that moment. It was important to send a signal to my family in the stands. I looked at them and said, 'That's it.'”

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Messi’s six moments in Qatar

Sports Brief previously reported Messi’s six unforgettable World Cup moments as revealed by the former Barcelona player in celebration of the six-month anniversary of the triumph.

The 36-year-old recapped some of the best moments in Qatar, which include his incredible assist for Nahuel Molina against the Netherlands and his opening goal against Mexico.

Messi opens up on assist to Molina

Sports Brief previously reported on Messi's describing his assist to Molina during the game against the Netherlands, one of his best playmaking acts at the tournament.

He admitted he saw the Atletico Madrid defender moving into space before he crafted the beautifully weighted pass onto his path.