Lautaro Martinez, Argentina striker and scorer of the winning goal against England, expressed his happiness at leading his country to the 2026 World Cup final, confirming that he was confident of scoring even before stepping onto the pitch.

Lautaro said in statements after the 2-1 victory in the semifinal: 'I dreamed of this goal, I swear it... I told Alexis Mac Allister that I would score, and I told him that I would come on and decide the match, then the ball came to me as I expected.'

Lautaro: This team continues to prove its character

The Albiceleste striker praised the level shown by his teammates, pointing out that the Argentine team continued to show its character on big occasions.

He added: 'Enzo Fernández scored a wonderful goal, and now that my nerves have calmed down, I can say that this team continues to prove its true mettle in big matches.'

England's retreat gave us control

Lautaro explained that the English team lost their early advantage over time, which gave Argentina the opportunity to impose their style and come back into the match.

He said: 'They got tired after pressing hard for 60 minutes, and after that they had little left to offer. They started the match well and scored first, but then they dropped back, which gave us more calmness in passing the ball and widening the play.'

He concluded his statements by saying: 'In the end, we scored two goals, and after three and a half years, we are back in the World Cup final again, and this is a great achievement for this team.'