Socceroos goalkeeper Mat Ryan would have wanted the ground to swallow him up then and there as his nightmare error led to Argentina’s second goal which all but killed the game off.
With the Aussies needing an equaliser to get back into the game, the Socceroos looked to build up from the back early in the second half.
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Ryan played a ball out to left back Aziz Behich, who passed it off to centre back Kye Rowles.
However, the Argentinians sensed the moment was an opportune one to press with intensity and Rowles laid it back to Ryan.
But instead of clearing the ball under pressure, Ryan looked to take it upon himself to beat Rodrigo De Paul with the ball at his feet.
The risky move did not pay off at all, as although Ryan beat De Paul, he gifted the ball to Julian Alvarez who immediately rolled the ball into an empty net and wheeled off to celebrate.
It effectively killed off any hope the Aussies had of getting back into the match as Ryan was left to rue the costly error.
Ryan’s howler was yet another gift from the Aussies that the Albiceleste gratefully took advantage of, as Aziz Behich gave away an unnecessary foul in the first half that led to Lionel Messi’s opener in the 35th minute.
Behich had his own tussle with the superstar only minutes earlier but his frustration had not cooled off, as he needlessly bundled Papu Gomez over to concede a free-kick.
Although Messi’s initial set-piece delivery was cleared, the Socceroos failed to get the ball away from the area as the Paris Saint-Germain star gleefully took it upon himself to finish past Ryan like only he could.
