Gary Neville was left red-faced after his rather bold assessment of Lionel Messi backfired in less than 30 minutes during Argentina's pivotal 2-0 World Cup group stage win over Mexico on Saturday night.
The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner had the weight of a nation on his shoulders as he aimed to inspire a return to form after the humiliating 2-1 defeat by Saudi Arabia earlier this week. A second successive loss would have ensured Argentina's elimination and at one stage that seemed a realistic possibility.
After 45 minutes, Messi and Argentina had barely laid a glove on Mexico, which prompted Neville to confidently declare: "Players aren't fearful of Lionel Messi anymore," while on punditry duty for ITV at half-time.
