Australia coach Graham Arnold doffed his hat to Argentina’s skipper and star striker Lionel Messi after he scored a mesmerising goal in a 2-1 win that knocked the Aussies out of the World Cup in the Round of 16 at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium on Saturday night. 

Messi’s 35th minute strike in his 1000th career game gave Argentina a 1-0 lead before Julia Alvarez doubled the lead in the 57th minute. Australia pulled one back through an Enzo Fernandez own-goal in the 77th minute but couldn’t find the equaliser and the Argentines held on for a famous win.