Cristian Romero has branded Gary Neville “stupid” after the former Manchester United defender criticised his centre-back partnership with Lisandro Martinez – a pairing that helped Argentina reach the World Cup final.
Speaking after Argentina’s dramatic 2-1 semi-final win over England in Atlanta, the Tottenham defender did not hold back when asked about Neville’s punditry. “The only thing that I hope for is that when I retire, I am not that stupid,” Romero told DSports. “Hopefully I won’t criticise a player or anyone. Because at the end of the day, we are doing our best for our national team. Sometimes it goes right for us, sometimes badly, but we are just happy to be in a World Cup final again. I think we are making history, for us it is something really huge, and we feel the significance of this shirt like no-one else.”
“Cristian Romero called Gary Neville 'stupid' after pundit criticised his Argentina defensive partnership.”
Neville, who won 85 caps for England and works for ITV and Sky, had described Romero and Martinez as “the best, worst centre-half pairing in the world” on the Overlap Podcast. “They seem to give a goal away between them every single game,” he said. “But you watch them, they are scoring goals, heading the ball, they're literally everywhere – it's incredible. I call them the best, worst centre-half pairing in the world. Because they absolutely at times can be unbelievable, but the next, it's the sublime to the ridiculous.”
Both Romero and Martinez were booked in Wednesday’s feisty semi-final, but they also played a significant part in limiting England to only two shots on target as the defending champions came from behind to win with late goals. Romero and Martinez, both 28, have started all but one of Argentina’s World Cup games this summer, helping Lionel Scaloni’s side reach their second successive final. The pair have kept two clean sheets in the six World Cup games they have started together, conceding six goals.
Manchester United defender Martinez had his own response. “We're used to people always talking about us,” he said. “It seems like they like doing it, and we respond on the pitch, that's it, always with respect.”
Argentina will face Spain in Sunday’s World Cup final as they aim to win the tournament for a fourth time. Romero and Martinez will be expected to start again – and silence their critics once more.