Argentina midfielder shows strikers the way to goal

LEIPZIG, June 25: An Argentina midfielder who at the start of the tournament said he did not see himself as a goalscorer struck a fabulous winner against Mexico to send his team into the World Cup quarter-finals.

Maxi Rodriguez blasted a looping left-footed volley from outside the box eight minutes into extra time to give Argentina a 2-1 victory and take his tally to three goals in four matches at these finals and becoming his country's top scorer.

''It could have gone into the stands just as easily as it went into the net,'' Rodriguez said.

''But it went into the goal and that's the way those kind of goals happen,'' the 25-year-old told a news conference after being presented with the Man of the Match award.

''We tried getting to goal in whatever way possible, trying to play with the ball on the ground was getting complicated, with centres too, and then we got the goal from outside the box,'' Rodriguez said.

Mexico were proving a tough nut to crack for Argentina, who are seen as favourites to lift their third World Cup, with a packed defence keeping the strikers on a tight rein and the midfield often cut off from the attack.

Rodriguez, who plays for Atletico Madrid, said at the start of the World Cup: ''I see myself as a right-sided midfielder who gets up into the box, not a goalscorer as they sometimes call me in Spain.'' Yesterday he added: ''It's not my thing. That we have to leave to Hernan (Crespo), Javi (Javier Saviola), I think they are the real goalscorers.'' But it was Rodriguez's strike, which could be a candidate for goal of the tournament, that gave Argentina the edge in the scoreline to avoid being taken to penalties by Mexico.

Rodriguez scored twice when Argentina demolished Serbia&Montenegro 6-0 in their second group game eight days ago which secured their place in the second round.

They produced an all-round brilliant performance in that match with strikers Crespo, Carlos Tevez and Lionel Messi and midfielder Esteban Cambiasso also finding the net.

Since then, however, Argentina have found goals hard to come by, having drawn 0-0 with Netherlands, and yesterday their equaliser against Mexico, which was attributed to Crespo, was helped in by Mexican striker Jared Borgetti.

REUTERS

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