Enzo Fernandez had an evening to forget in the eyes of Argentina fans, as the Chelsea midfielder escaped a shock exit against Cape Verde.
It wasn’t so straightforward for Enzo Fernandez in his first outing since Javier Pastore caused uproar with his comments on his client’s future, and he was there to watch in the stands.
Argentina narrowly survived a World Cup scare against debutants Cape Verde in Miami. Starting in midfield, Fernandez struggled to break down the underdogs’ ultra-disciplined defensive low block, with a frustrating performance encapsulated by a spectacular bicycle kick that screwed well wide.
The minnows cancelled out Lionel Messi’s opener to force extra time at 1-1, pushing the world champions to their absolute limits. But Argentina eventually scraped through 3-2 following extra-time goals from Lisandro Martínez and Cristian Romero, but Fernandez’s mixed display did little to quieten the noise.
Enzo Fernandez needs to leave Chelsea for the good of the club 👋🏻
Thoughts?
Argentina fans rate Enzo Fernandez’s display against Cape Verde
Enzo Fernandez was cut zero slack from Argentina fans on X, who were appalled by his display, which seemed a little harsh.
One supporter put the blame entirely on Fernandez.
‘Fernandez, you are to blame for this mess.’
Meanwhile, another fan doesn’t want to see Fernandez play again for Argentina this World Cup.
‘Fernandez and Mac Allister, never again.’
A third joined the bandwagon.
‘It’s clear that Enzo Fernandez cannot be a starter in the next match.’
Another Argentina supporter suggested that Enzo was to blame.
‘Thank goodness we won, otherwise Enzo Fernandez was in trouble.’
The stats paint a different picture for Enzo Fernandez
Despite all the criticism from supporters, Enzo Fernandez actually played rather well when you take a look at his stats from the win over Cape Verde.
Fernandez had four shots, two on target, six touches in the opposition’s box, completed both of his dribbles and had the most touches of anyone on the pitch with 133.
As well as this, he had a passing accuracy percentage of 92, made 11 passes into the final third, three out of four accurate long balls, one tackle, six recoveries and two clearances, plus won five out of 10 duels.
However, having watched the game, he did look sloppy at times in possession and failed to create much.
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