Ever Banega's Assist To Messi Was Some Next Level Midfield Play

After watching first Lucas Biglia and then Enzo Perez do little except play balls into places where things go to die, it’s looking like Argentina’s riding Ever Banega next to Javier Mascherano from here on out (which still might not be very long whatsoever). Regardless, my God was it nice to see a ball from the Argentina midfield that wasn’t first coated in the feces of a leaky Mascherano anus.   

I know that Messi’s control and finish is absurd, but we expect that from Messi. We don’t expect this sort of thing from the players behind Messi — the trajectory on this driven clip was enough to make Diego Maradona cream his pants. 

If the media is now only concerned with the body language of Argentina, then I’m going to say Maradona’s body language shows signs of orgasm here.   

#MundialTelemundo ¡Golazo! de #Messi y #ARG ya lo gana sobre #NGA . Así lo narra @AndresCantorGOL pic.twitter.com/U7qdX3We9C

— Telemundo Deportes (@TelemundoSports) June 26, 2018

But that's how good this goal was. Banega has been crucial to Argentina's play in the first half.

Ever Banega is dictating the play for #ARG against #NGA

He had the most touches, played the most passes, created two chances and grabbed an assist in the opening 25 minutes. #WorldCup

Follow #NGAARG live

@BBCOne
@5liveSport
https://t.co/wXe1y7OBYV pic.twitter.com/nutzuayWcy

— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) June 26, 2018

To be fair to Jorge Sampaoli, we saw a lot of Banega throughout qualifying, and he never looked the answer to Argentina's unsolvable midfield problem. But you just never know once the World Cup rolls around, and Banega will surely sit next to Mascherano in the heart of midfield from here until the tragic end.