Argentina will play in its sixth FIFA World Cup final after shutting out Croatia 3-0 in Tuesday's semifinal.
Lionel Messi and Julián Álvarez were involved in all three goals, with Messi beautifully assisting Álvarez for Argentina's third of the night.
Argentina will face one of Morocco or France, who face each other on Wednesday, as it attempts to lift its third World Cup, and first since 1986.
Here are three winners and three losers from the first of two semifinals.
The Messi-Álvarez duo
Ten years ago, a young fan asked Lionel Messi for a photo and the Argentinean superstar gladly obliged.
That fan just so happened to be Julián Álvarez.
Ten years later, it was Álvarez and Messi combining to guide Argentina to its sixth World Cup final.
It's hard to believe that Álvarez, still just 22 years old, is a backup at Manchester City. Such is life when competing with Erling Haaland for minutes.
However, Álvarez reminded everyone of his exploits with a lovely touch to bring down Enzo Fernandez's tremendous pass over the top of Croatia's defence. That action drew the penalty that was eventually converted by Messi.
Then, five minutes later, Álvarez weaved through the Croatian defence and finished a lovely slalom run – aided by some fortunate deflections and lacklustre defending – to double Argentina's lead before halftime.
The plan from Argentina was fairly straightforward after the opening 30 minutes. La Albiceleste had controlled possession up until the half-hour mark, but were wary of Croatia's threat on the counter, with Mateo Kovacic – easily Croatia's best player – routinely exposing the Argentineans in transition.
Eventually, Argentina ceded the initiative and allowed Croatia to roam forward. Álvarez (No. 9 below) was tasked with running in behind a stretched Croatian back line as the lone striker, using his pace and intelligent off-the-ball runs to pounce.
Ditto for Messi, who was met with fierce man-marking from Josko Gvardiol, Marcelo Brozovic and essentially anybody who could lay a glove on the 35-year-old.
Messi adapted to the circumstances by dropping deeper, evading the immediate pressure further up the pitch and ran rampant. He logged two key passes (one assist), completed 34 of his 40 passes, five of seven dribbles and produced two shots on target, one of which should've been converted in the second half after some lovely footwork.
While three strikes are from the penalty spot, Messi is now up to five goals – tied with Kylian Mbappe atop the Golden Boot race – and three assists.
To put that into context, Messi hadn't scored in a World Cup knockout stage before this year and had six goals in his previous four appearances.
Another reminder: Messi is 35 years old.
If Messi finally lifts that elusive World Cup, that may finally end the debate of which player is truly the greatest of all-time, especially if he produces this level of performance in the final.
Enzo Fernández
It can't be a coincidence that Argentina grew into the tournament at the same rate as Enzo Fernández.
The Benfica midfielder didn't start in the opening loss to Saudi Arabia and it showed. Fernández's ability to orchestrate games, break lines with his passing and defensive contributions have been integral to Argentina's run, the semifinal included.
Fernández was one of four midfielders who started, although he made up a double pivot of sorts with Leandro Paredes, who sat in front of the centre-backs with Fernández in more of a box-to-box role.
It paid off brilliantly, with Fernández completing six recoveries, two of four tackles and 42 of 48 passes, including that incredible pass to Álvarez that drew the penalty.
It's only a matter of time until Fernández is sold for a stupidly high fee with that combination of vision and defensive acuity.
Lionel Scaloni
In a match that was going to hinge on midfield superiority, Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni nailed it from start to finish.
From selection to tactics to his in-game adjustments, this was a masterclass from the Argentinean coach. The decision to start with four midfielders was bold, but was flawlessly executed. Rodrigo De Paul helped right-back Nahuel Molina shield the right flank which Kovacic operated in, Alexis Mac Allister combined with Nicolás Tagliafico on the left with Paredes and Fernández operating in front of the defence to monitor Luka Modric's late runs.
When it appeared Croatia's rest defence was impenetrable while sitting in a deep block, Scaloni changed it up. Argentina ceded possession, then scored their first two goals in transition.
It's been quite a ride for Scaloni since he was hired as a caretaker manager in 2018. He was never the Argentinean federation's first choice, yet here he is with a Copa América and a chance to lift the World Cup.
Not bad for a coach who wasn't even close to being Argentina's primary candidate for the job four years ago.
Josko Gvardiol
There's no doubt that Josko Gvardiol was one of the standout players of this World Cup. At 20 years old, he's destined for an excellent career and a transfer to one of the biggest clubs on the planet.
But Gvardiol was horrific on Tuesday. His confidence on the ball and marauding forward runs make him a highly coveted player but it was apparent that this became an area of focus if Argentina won possession and there was space to run into on the counter.
That was certainly the plan for Messi, who accumulated a high number of touches in the right half-space, an area where Gvardiol would theoretically occupy.
It's understandable to struggle against Messi. But Gvardiol was constantly being burned and, perhaps, backs up the point that he could be better suited as part of a back three. Gvardiol is an aggressive centre-back on the ball and it would provide him the freedom to push up with ample cover behind him.
The Marcelo Brozovic-sized hole
It was apparent that Marcelo Brozovic was on his last legs early in the second half on Tuesday.
Having run at least 15 kilometres in each of the last two games, Brozovic had to be hauled off the pitch and any hope of a Croatian comeback were shot. The gaps in midfield for Argentina to exploit became much wider without Brozovic covering in defensive transition.
It could've been an entirely different outcome if Brozovic was fitter from the start.
Croatia's golden generation
There's every possibility that Luka Modric could lace up his boots for Euro 2024 at 38 years old. But this might be the last time we've seen Croatia's golden generation as we know it.
It was a fantastic run, highlighted by a World Cup final in 2018 and the semifinals in 2022. Not bad for a country with a population of 3.9 million.
Considering Croatia has only competed at tournaments since 1998 after splitting from Yugoslavia, reaching the World Cup semifinals in back-to-back tournaments is incredible.
With its pedigree for developing technically gifted, high-quality players, surely it'll only be a matter of time until Croatia returns to this stage.
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