- Messi and Argentina players inspect Pickford's penalty notes bottle.
- Viral post-match moment follows Argentina's World Cup win.
- Watch the incident that has football fans talking.
During an exciting match in the semifinals of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Argentina won a great victory against England. One interesting incident took place after the match as Argentina enjoyed its victory with a score of 2-1. The players of the country found a bottle containing relevant notes by the goalkeeper of England, Jordan Pickford, near the goal of the English team.
The bottle with detailed tips on how the goalkeeper would deal with every player from Argentina aroused the interest of many players of Argentina, who became very curious about the contents of that peculiar item. As a result, the joke started spreading all over the Internet.
Messi And Argentina Players Curious About Pickford's Secret Notes
As the England players trudged off the pitch disappointed, over on the field, Argentina's players were continuing their celebrations. Amongst other things, Messi and several players, including Marcos Senesi and Nicolás González began to read the instructions written on Pickford's water bottle found on the field.
As Messi was puzzled reading the notes, Senesi took the initiative to translate and explain some of the points to Messi. Also, one of the Argentine coaching staff members brought the bottle to the attention of Enzo Fernández, who had scored the equalizing goal for Argentina.
WATCH: Argentina Discover Pickford's Viral Bottle
The bottle had some clear instructions as to what Argentina's players were supposed to do in case there was a shootout.
Argentina playing when the found out about Pickford bottle water predicting where to dive #Argentina #England #Final #Fifaworldcup #Spain pic.twitter.com/Xc3N4jtfRT
— Lily🌻 (@LillyE76084) July 16, 2026
What Was Written On Pickford's Cheat Sheet?
The notes reportedly included personalized strategies for several Argentine stars. For Lionel Messi, the instructions reportedly read: "Fake left, dive right," anticipating that the Argentine captain could change his usual penalty routine.
Enzo Fernández's note advised Pickford to "Stand central," while Thiago Almada's section reportedly read "Feel on the day," leaving the goalkeeper to make a decision based on the moment. Other Argentine players also had individual directions listed on the bottle. Fortunately for Argentina, those plans were never put to use.
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After having taken the lead through Anthony Gordon in the second half, England seemed well on their way to being part of their first World Cup final since 1966. But Enzo Fernández equalized for Argentina before Lautaro Martínez headed home the winning goal via a cross from Lionel Messi in injury time that gave the defending champions a place in the FIFA World Cup final for the second time in a row.