Spain defender Aymeric Laporte has said Argentina try to unsettle opponents through persistent fouling and physical play, and has called for the referee to be firm from the first whistle of Sunday’s World Cup final.
Laporte said such conduct should not be tolerated in football and wants strict officiating from the outset when Spain face Argentina for the title.
Argentina meet Spain in the final at New York, with kickoff at 1:00am Bangladesh time on 20 July. It will be the first World Cup final to feature the reigning champions of both the Copa America and the European Championship.
Argentina leaned on physicality in their semi-final win over England, with both sides going at each other especially hard in the first half. In the 2-1 victory, Argentina committed 15 fouls and had three players booked, while England were not far behind, committing 11 fouls and picking up one yellow card.
Just three minutes into that match, Enzo Fernandez caught Elliot Anderson with a heavy tackle from behind, catching the England midfielder at the back of the neck in what many felt was deliberate. The Argentina midfielder was not shown a card.
England supporters have also argued that Argentina’s winning goal should have been ruled out, claiming Lionel Messi fouled English defender Jade Spence in the buildup.
Laporte says he has no issue with aggressive football played within the rules, but the 32-year-old wants the referee alert to preventing the match from descending into disorder.
“It’s the referee’s job to manage these things so the situation doesn’t get out of control,” he said. “If a couple of players are allowed to play like that, it creates chaos in the match.”
“I’m not at all concerned about aggressive football within the rules of the game. If it stays within the rules and the referee does his job properly, I have no problem with it.”
Laporte also raised concerns about Argentina being allowed to get away with certain incidents unchecked.
“It’s true that in some recent matches we’ve seen things that were genuinely surprising, certain actions that were let go far too easily,” he said.
“Argentina in particular are a team that like to leave their mark on opponents through physical dominance. That shouldn’t be allowed in football, especially in major tournaments, because it can unsettle and provoke the other side.”
