Emi Martinez insists “everybody wanted us to lose” after Argentina reached the World Cup final following a 3-0 win over Croatia.
The Aston Villa goalkeeper, who has been outspoken throughout the tournament in Qatar, kept another clean sheet at the Lusail Stadium.
Lionel Messi’s penalty and a double from Julian Alvarez was enough to book a place in Sunday’s final against the winner of France vs Morocco, with Martinez claiming there is a siege mentality in the Albiceleste’s group.
“I can’t believe it, we lost the first game and everything was upside down,” Martinez told beIN SPORTS. “People were doubting us, we lost the unbeaten run. Against Mexico in the first half it was sloppy. Everybody wanted us to lose, it’s us against the rest of the world.
“It’s just amazing, we feel the crowd on the streets, every time we play we feel like we are at home. We’re so happy to have them here.”
Messi could be seen grabbing at his groin, sparking fears of an injury ahead of Sunday’s final, but Martinez has dismissed any concerns.
“No, we play 120 minutes against Holland and it was a hard game for him [Messi],” Martinez added.
“You can see he wants to finish every game, physically he’s really good and is Man of the Match every time he plays.”
Messi, meanwhile, insists “we know what we are” and has asked Argentina fans to “believe in us” after clinching a second World Cup final and a chance at redemption following defeat to Germany in 2014.
“I don’t know if it’s my best World Cup or not,” Messi said after picking up the Player of the Match. “I’ve been enjoying this a lot for a long time.
“We were confident that this group was going to pull it off. We know what we are and we ask the people to believe in us.
“Many things went through my mind. It’s very exciting to see all of this, the people, the family.
“The entire World Cup was incredible, what we experienced and now we are going for the last match, which is what we wanted.
“We have been through tough situations, other very good ones. Today, we are living something spectacular.
“I’m enjoying it with all of these people and all the Argentines that are in our country. I imagine it has to be crazy.”
While Nicolas Otamendi, at the heart of the Argentine backline, which kept out Croatia, has described the tenacity of the squad as a whole.
“We are 26 warriors who are willing to fight for the people,” said the Benfica defender.
