Nicolas Gonzalez: Argentina Player Produces Comical Miss vs Costa Rica in Friendly

• Argentina comfortably beat Costa Rica 3-1 in a friendly on Wednesday, March 27
• Nicolas Gonzalez had a forgettable moment as he saw his effort cleared off the line
• The Fiorentina winger was in disbelief as his goal-bound effort was cleared away

The Argentina-Costa Rica game on Wednesday, March 27, treated fans to a meme-worthy moment as Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez saw his effort painfully cleared off the line.

Gonzalez was briefly left stunned as he missed the chance to give his nation a 4-1 lead late in the game.

The Albiceleste ran out comfortable 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Angel di Maria, Alexis Mac Allister and Lautaro Martinez.

Costa Rica, who were less fancied against the world champions, had taken a shock lead through Spartak Moscow striker Manfred Ugarte as Los Ticos went into the break holding a delicate lead.

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Despite lacking the services of their talisman Lionel Messi, Argentina turned the game around in the second half, scoring a treble of goals in 25 minutes.

Gonzalez’s miss

It could have easily been four for the Albiceleste, had Fiorentina winger Gonzalez been more ruthless with his effort late on.

The 25-year-old broke clear down the left flank in the 90th minute after an inch-perfect pass by Nicolas Tagliafico, as seen in a video shared by @centregoals.

Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas tried make himself big by bearing down on Gonzalez, who dinked the ball over the helpless goalie, leaving the goal at the Argentine’s mercy.

Gonzalez could have easily tapped the ball home, but decided to watch his dinked effort roll in the net. Unfortunately for him, Costa Rica defender Haxzel Quiros hadn’t given up on the chase and he ran onto the ball before clearing it off the line.

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It was a comical incident that left Gonzalez briefly wide-eyed in disbelief as he missed the chance to get onto the scoresheet for his nation.

What next for Argentina and Gonzalez?

Argentina will now turn their attention to Copa America, which is set to kick off in June.

Gonzalez, meanwhile, will return to his club Fiorentina, who play AC Milan in a crunch Serie A match on Saturday, March 30, according to the club website.

Romelu Lukaku with Trivela assist

Elsewhere, Sports Brief reported on Romelu Lukaku’s sublime assist during Belgium’s friendly against England.

The Roma striker picked out Youri Tielemans perfectly with a cross with the outside of his boot and the Aston Villa finished off the move with a diving header.

Despite the Red Devils leading for a majority of the second half, Jude Bellingham rescued England with a late equaliser.