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Argentina defender Nicolas Otamendi has revealed a phone call he received from his former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola after winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Otamendi was part of the Albiceleste side that triumphed in Qatar, winning the World Cup for the third time in the nation's history. The Benfica captain appeared in all seven of Lionel Scaloni's side's games as they went on to beat France in the final.
However, Argentina did it the hard way in the final, beating Les Bleus 4-2 on penalties after a 3-3 draw across 120 minutes. Scaloni's men surrendered a 2-0 lead in regulation time but still went on to prevail.
Otamendi shed light on a phone call he received from Guardiola in which the City boss lauded Albiceleste's mentality. He said (via AlbicelesteTalk):
"Pep Guardiola called me after the World Cup, and he asked me how we managed to have that mentality we had after blowing the 2-0 lead and being able to protect the result and play like that how we did in the extra times."
Argentina's win against France wasn't the only remarkable performance staged by the South Americans in Qatar. They showed real character in the quarter-finals to beat the Netherlands 4-3 on penalties after giving up a 2-0 lead in regulation time.
Pep Guardiola's reaction to Lionel Messi's Argentina winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup
Guardiola was thrilled to see Lionel Messi cement his legacy by finally winning the World Cup. However, the legendary coach wouldn't have changed his opinion that the Barcelona icon is the greatest in history if Argentina failed to triumph (via TNT Sports):
"If he [Messi] had not won the World Cup, my opinion about what he has done for world football, it wouldn't have changed absolutely anything. Of course, for him it's the final achievement of an incredible career."
The City manager coached Messi at Barca from 2008 to 2012 and saw firsthand the development of perhaps the greatest player in history. The 36-year-old flourished under the Spanish tactician, bagging 211 goals and 94 assists in 219 games.
Messi had appeared in four World Cup tournaments before reaching the mountain top in Qatar. He was the star of the show in last year's competition, hitting seven goals and three assists in seven games, picking up the Golden Ball award for his heroics.
