‘I’ll beat the sh*t out of you!’ - Emi Martinez reveals brutal threat to Argentina team-mate Cristian Romero during World Cup final against France after his horror tackle on Kylian Mbappe

Tottenham defender Romero flew into a challenge with France star Mbappe in the first half of the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar last December. The South American side won the game on penalties after a 3-3 draw but at half time, Villa keeper Martinez pulled his fellow countryman aside to warn him about his reckless challenges in an effort to stop him getting sent off.

He told ESPN: "I know Cuti's (Romero) weakness, I remember in the final against France he went with both feet against Mbappe. He grabbed the ball, everything. And at half-time I grabbed him by the shirt and told him, 'If you get kicked out, I'll beat the sh*t out of you after the game'.

"I have to tell Cuti 'Please, stop hitting'. Cuti plays like that, on the edge of a red card, and I'm always catching him in that sense. But he's impressive."

Argentina won their third World Cup crown in one of the greatest finals of the tournament's history. Lionel Messi also finally achieved his dream to win this great trophy after many years of trying. Argentina got the win without having any players sent off, so maybe Martinez's chat with Romero did the trick...

Argentina duo Martinez and Romero may cross paths again when they return to international action in the Copa America in June of next year.