Argentina 3-2 France
Argentina goals: Kevin Arrieta (3), Angel Claudino (8), Kevin Arrieta (37)
France goals: Nicolas Menendez (6), Mamadou Toure (25)
Player of the Match: Angel Claudino (Argentina)
Kevin Arrieta was crushed. He was among the few cut from Matias Lucuix’s provisional squad for Uzbekistan 2024. What happened next belongs to fantasy. When Andres Geraghty got injured, days before the tournament, Arrieta was summoned to Central Asia to replace him. There, he has been unplayable.
Two goals in the quarter-final against Kazakhstan were followed by the same, and a breathtaking assist, in the defeat of France. Argentina having the biggest FIFA Futsal World Cup final in history™, against arch-enemies Brazil, to look forward is indebted to Arrieta.
France can be proud of panicking a team whose experience dwarfs their own. They must now go for bronze against Ukraine.
Quotes
“Without the confidence of my team-mates, I wouldn’t be here. Every time there is a shooting option, they always trust me. A tournament of this magnitude is something incredible for me. I didn’t expect it because I was the last to get called into the squad. To be experiencing this is something incredible.”
Kevin Arrieta, Argentina winger
“I told you we were going to win! It’s crazy. I wanted Argentina versus Brazil, it’s the most beautiful thing possible. It will probably be my last World Cup. To play a South American clásico in a World Cup final will be incredible.”
Pablo Taborda, Argentina fixo
