[gossip board] Tariafico: I didn’t expect to start instead of Acuna, but I also got the job done.

December 22-Argentina defeated France in a penalty shootout in the final of the Qatar World Cup, lifting the World Cup trophy 36 years later. In a recent interview, Argentine defender Tariafico also recalled that he took the place of Acuna before the World Cup final.
About how you feel about winning the championship
​ Talia Fico: “although we won the World Cup, I still feel calm because everything is not over yet, we are still immersed in this joy and carnival.” Because in my opinion, it’s crazy. At the end of our career, we can look back on this experience and see what we have done and what we have achieved. But I think it will be the best ending in history for me, and we can still be proud of our performance. ”
Replacing Acuna in the starting team before the final
Talia Fico: “to be honest, I didn’t know I was going to play in the final because Acuna was scheduled to start.” But then I saw my name in the starting line-up and the manager told me I was about to start. That’s what happened, and it happened to me against Italy. But that’s the way it is. I think I need to be prepared, and I believe I’ve done my job well. ”
“generally speaking, we were very calm throughout the final, including the afternoon before the final, we were very calm about the arrival of the final because we didn’t have time to consider external factors. But when you get to the stadium and start to hear the cries of the fans, everything is different. We played very well in the first 77 minutes, we played our own style and performance on the pitch, we kept a 2-0 lead, but the lead of the two goals was equalized at once. This way is too painful. Fortunately, we finally won the game, which I think is lucky for us. ”
Did you finish the full penalty shootout in the final?
Talia Fico: “I was replaced by Dibala. I didn’t even watch Martinez’s last save (saved by French striker Muani), and I didn’t watch the full penalty shootout.” I was already off the pitch, I just watched Mbappe’s first penalty and then I was too nervous to watch it again. ”
Did you ever think that Argentina would win the championship?
Talia Fico: “I’ve imagined it many times.” But there’s a long way to go from there to what happened. I have felt this since the day we beat Mexico. It was a crucial day because it wasn’t a group match for us since that game, it was one final after another. If we want to be champions, we must win every game. When we beat Mexico, we were back on track. ”
“the defeat against Saudi Arabia was like a slap in the face. We haven’t lost in the first 36 games, but now we’ve lost the first game of the World Cup. So in the game against Mexico, we became very strong. We told ourselves that we had to win the last two games of the group stage. ”
“I will talk to my family and tell them the weight of my Hercules Cup. This is the greatest achievement for footballers. What could be better than that? There’s nothing else. I hope it can become a role model for everything, this is football, this is a sport, I hope it can serve the people, we realize that if we are together, we can achieve a lot. ”