Lionel Messi unhappy with referee after Argentina scrape past Peru in World Cup Qualifiers

Argentina barely managed to scrape past Peru 1-0 in their match as a part of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in South America. The Albiceleste's skipper Lionel Messi was not at all pleased with the match official, with the six-time Ballon d'Or winner claiming that the referee makes contentious decisions "on purpose". The match official was Brazilian Wilton Sampaio, he has previously officiated four other games of the Argentine national team.

What probably ticked Messi off was in the second half, Sampaio awarded Peru a spot-kick for a rather soft foul. However, luckily for Argentina, Yoshimar Yotun hit his shot straight on to the crossbar and out. Lionel Messi posted on Instagram:

Difficult match, difficult to play. A lot of wind, they were playing deep, leaving little space for us. The referee always does this when he referees us, as if he does it on purpose. But well, three important points and we're close to our objective.

Argentina dominated the proceedings but a strong defensive performance from Peru meant that the Albiceleste would have to put in their all to grab the three points. With 68% possession, they only managed two shots on target, which included Lautaro Martinez's 43rd-minute winner. They were constantly frustrated by Peru's deep defensive line as they dropped back and played from their own half, unwilling to let Argentina go past. After the win against Peru, Argentina currently sit second in the standings with 25 points from 11 games but six points behind Brazil who have dropped points only once so far. They will next face Uruguay followed by Brazil in the mid-November international break.

Previous Argentina matches officiated by Sampaio

Sampaio has officiated four matches prior to Argentina's 1-0 win over Peru in the World Cup Qualifiers. They have remained undefeated in all their encounters with him as the referee, a goalless draw against Peru in a World Cup qualifier back in October 2017, a 1-1 draw against Paraguay at the 2019 Copa America, a win over Uruguay again in the 2019 Copa America and finally a 3-0 win against Ecuador again in the same competition.

Image: AP