Overview
- Gary Neville had publicly criticised Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martínez in the build‑up to the semi‑final, calling the pairing the “best‑worst” centre‑halves and saying they frequently concede goals.
- After Argentina’s late 2-1 comeback victory over England on Wednesday, Romero told DSports that he hopes he will “not be that stupid” to criticise players when he retires and said Neville’s remarks helped fire him up for the match.
- Lisandro Martínez gave a measured response to the punditry, saying the squad are used to outside talk and prefer to let their performances answer critics on the pitch.
- Both Romero and Martínez started the semi‑final, received yellow cards, and were credited across match reports with helping frustrate England as Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez scored late to secure the win.
- The exchange has intensified scrutiny of Romero’s club form and transfer prospects after a turbulent season at Tottenham, and it underlines growing tensions between media punditry and elite players during major tournaments.