WATCH: ‘Agitated’ Chile fans flip middle finger toward Emiliano Martinez following his outrageous celebration in front of them after Lautaro Martinez’s goal

No footballer riles up his opposition as good as Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez. The Aston Villa keeper was instrumental to the defending champions as they scraped past Chile with a narrow win at MetLife Stadium. Lionel Messi and co. were heading into a goalless draw against their opponents when a late goal from Lautaro Martinez saved the day for the Albiceleste.

After hanging on for the final few minutes of injury time, Emiliano Martinez did not hold back as he celebrated vigorously in the face of the opposition fans. As expected, his joyous display was not received pleasantly among Chile fans. A clip shared on social media shows several fans shouting and angrily gesturing towards the shot-stopper.

Fans also flipped their middle fingers towards the opposition goalkeeper, who couldn’t have been bothered less about the same. Martinez did exceptionally well to keep out Chile over 90 minutes.

His crucial stops saved Argentina from having to fight for qualification on the final matchday against Peru on the last day of the month.

Late Lautaro Martinez strike saves Argentina against Chile

After a winning start against Canada in their tournament opener, Argentina struggled to find the net against a resolute Chilean side. The Albiceleste were on the front foot from the very start as Lionel Messi unleashed an unstoppable shot from outside the box. His grounded shot scraped the outside of the post and went out for a goal kick. Claudio Bravo stood firm between the sticks to deny Nicolas Gonzalez a stunning goal from close range.

It was then Argentina’s turn to defend as Emiliano Martinez got down quickly to keep out two goal-worthy shots unleashed by the opposition. In the end, it was all smiles for Argentina when Lautaro Martinez finished off an untidy chance from close range. The match official awarded the goal to the defending champions after a lengthy consultation with VAR.

That being said, Argentina will consider themselves lucky to have come home with the win. Had they failed to do so, qualification would not have been guaranteed if not for a win on the final matchday. As of now, Argentina are top of Group A with 6 points from 2 games. They face Peru on the 29th for their final game of the group stage.

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