"When he failed, we showed that we are behind him to support him" - Argentina star opens up on Lionel Messi's penalty miss in 2-0 Poland win

Argentina midfielder Rodrigo De Paul has backed Lionel Messi as the captain of the boat, despite his penalty miss in their final group stage match against Poland at the FIFA World Cup.

Argentina needed a win in their final match of the group stages to secure a spot in the next round. Messi missed a penalty in the first half, but goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Julián Álvarez helped them secure a 2-0 win.

The Argentina dream lives on 🇦🇷

#FIFAWorldCup #Qatar2022 https://t.co/j1bcuTv70H

Speaking to TyC Sports after the match, De Paul claimed that the team knew they had to step up and deliver after Messi's miss. He claimed the PSG star showed the way against Mexico and it was time for others to do the same. He was quoted by Mundo Albiceleste saying:

"[Lionel] Messi is our captain, he drives the boat. Against Mexico, he opened the game and today, when he failed, we showed that we are behind him to support him."

Speaking about the progress into the next round, De Paul added:

"You always learn from the losses. At first, we found ourselves in a position that was unusual for us and we showed that we have a lot of character and personality. I am happy to wear the shirt of the Argentina national team. I love the country in which I was born in and I will always give more for this shirt. At times, things come off well and at times bad. But I will never hide. I'm never going to stop running. It's who I am, which is what brought me here and it will always be like this."

Lionel Messi on missing the penalty against Poland

Lionel Messi has admitted he is annoyed at his missed penalty against Poland.

Messi 🆚 Lewandowski

See the highlights from Argentina's 2-0 win over Poland on FIFA+

The PSG star claimed the team was convinced about securing the win and said after the match:

"I'm annoyed that I have missed the penalty. But the team came out stronger after my mistake. The team was convinced that we were going to win, it was a matter of scoring the first goal. After that, the rest of the game was played the way we wanted."

Lionel Messi's Argentina face Australia in the Round of 16, with the winner taking on the Netherlands or United States in the quarterfinals.