Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick in the final and yet still ended up losing, was the subject of another swipe from the Argentine players in the immediate aftermath of the final in Doha. They marked their win by holding a ‘minute’s silence’ for the forward in the dressing room after the game.
Further celebrations saw a staff member dive head-first into a bin and Argentine players signing about “f—- journalists” in the media area at the Lusail Stadium. Martinez has become a focal point for some of the more questionable behavior in the past 48 hours. He was hailed as a hero for his role in the shoot-out, which came after the game ended 3-3 at normal time.
The Aston Villa goalkeeper saved one penalty from Kingsley Coman and had an influential impact in a second being missed. He was pictured throwing the ball away when Aurelien Tchouameni had been expecting it to be returned to him. The France midfielder subsequently put his penalty wide.
Martinez then shocked millions of TV viewers when he held the goalkeeper trophy, a giant gold-plated hand, to his groin and waved it around on the podium. He later said he “did it because the French booed me. Pride doesn’t work with me.”
Argentina’s parade would go on to be abandoned due to safety fears, with players being evacuated away in helicopters.
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