Lionel Messi discovers England goalkeeper's hidden 'cheat sheet' revealing how Argentina's stars take penalties
Thomas Bamford
Featured Image Credit: (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Lionel Messi and his Argentina teammates got an amusing glimpse into England's World Cup semifinal game plan after stumbling across a 'cheat sheet' belonging to goalkeeper Jordan Pickford following their 2-1 win on Wednesday.
Cameras caught Messi and forward Nicolás González holding a water bottle belonging to the Everton keeper, with notes pasted onto the side detailing how each Argentina player was likely to take a penalty kick, along with tips on how Pickford planned to react in a potential shootout.
The moment was first highlighted in a post from ESPN FC on Thursday, July 16, which noted that the players had found 'Jordan Pickford's bottle featuring notes on Argentina's penalty takers.'
Argentina's fitness coach, Luis Martin, later shared a photo of the bottle to his Instagram, though the post has since been deleted.
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According to the notes, England's plan for Messi's spot kick was to 'fake left, dive right.' Other Argentina players received similarly detailed instructions, including Julián Álvarez, for whom Pickford had written 'dive left,' and Lautaro Martínez, marked down for 'dive right.' For midfielder Enzo Fernández, the note simply read 'stand central,' while for Thiago Almada, Pickford had written 'feel on the day.'
Footage from the broadcast showed Messi appearing visibly confused as he read through the notes with his teammates, with the bottle then passed around among other members of the Argentina squad, including Fernández and defender Marcos Senesi, who both appeared amused by what they found.
They found Jordan Pickford’s bottle featuring notes on Argentina’s penalty takers 💀👀
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 16, 2026
(📸 luismartin_9/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/7Rylwmwgq4
As it turned out, Pickford never got the chance to put his notes into practice.
The semifinal never reached penalties, with Lautaro Martínez scoring the winning goal for Argentina in stoppage time after Enzo Fernández had earlier equalized Anthony Gordon's opener for England.
The result books Argentina's place in the World Cup final against European champions Spain, while England will now face 2022 finalists France in Saturday's third-place playoff.
Messi, who provided both assists in the win, reflected on the achievement after the match. "It's crazy what this group has achieved once again, reaching another World Cup Final," he told reporters. "We came here as world champions, and we have been the best team over the last four years, whether people like it or not, and no matter what anyone says."
He continued, "Very few teams reach two consecutive World Cup Finals, and this group managed to do it. When this group comes together, it somehow finds something special within itself. The pain goes away, everyone gets physically fit and we play like we did today. This group never stops trying."
Morocco, Portugal and Spain will co-host the FIFA World Cup in 2030, marking the football tournament’s 100th anniversary.
It’s set to run from 8 June 2030 to 21 July 2030, making it the longest World Cup in history at 44 days.
FIFA also announced that three separate matches will take place in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, as a tribute to the first-ever World Cup back in 1930.