Tagliafico: Argentina's World Cup script and why Messi don't want this to end

It was the greatest World Cup final of them all but Nicolas Tagliafico has not watched it back in full. He has sat through the first 90 minutes but despite knowing that there is a happy ending, even he has not yet been able to face extra-time and penalties.

"It was not one for people with heart problems," he tells Sky Sports.

He is talking, of course, about Argentina's win over France. Two goals by Lionel Messi. Three by Kylian Mbappe. A lead lost, restored and lost again. That save by Emiliano Martinez. Lautaro Martinez's chance. And, finally, Gonzalo Montiel's penalty to win the World Cup.

"I know, for sure, I will watch it many times." But not yet.

Tagliafico had been substituted in the 121st minute. "I was exhausted from the heat and the adrenaline. I sat down and I could not get up again because I was so tired." Even in those brief moments before the penalty shootout, both teams had opportunities to win it.

"I remember watching the people on the screen. Everyone in the stadium was frozen. You could not hear a sound. And then, there was that incredible save. I could not believe it. Nor could anyone else in the stadium. And then, our chance at the end. That was so close."

Much of what followed remains a blur. But he remembers the celebrations once they returned to Argentina. "When we came back to Buenos Aires and saw the people it was incredible and I will remember it for the rest of my life," says Tagliafico.

"You play for the ones you love. But you also feel that you are playing for your country. As the World Cup progressed, we felt like we were playing for the people. We could feel it, even from a distance. That was the extra push for us to go and win the World Cup."

For Messi, it was the Hollywood ending. For Tagliafico,