6.55pm: Preamble: Hello and welcome to what I can only hope will be defiantly light-hearted and optimistic commentary on what is an intriguing last 16 game. Feel like a change of pace from all that frantic Northern European hoof-punt Hollywood-pass counter-attack blitzkrieg-launch wild flailing scuffled high-stepping knee-pumping chest-out bicep-flexing wild yelping 150%-giving blood-on-the-shirt-spilling crazed fist-pumping-team-talk-giving humped to the back stick flicked on by the big man six-man wrestling match by the corner flag malarky?
Me too.
6.59pm: Instead of all that, here we have a refreshingly Latin-ate affair. Possession will, most likely, be nurtured. Small, wily men will shuttle silkily sideways. Openings will be teased. The ball will be kept for longer than five frantical eye-bulging seconds.
And also Argentina will be tested properly for the first time. I have already been mocked by some members of this organ's online community for suggesting Mexico have a chance tonight. I'm still not sure why: Mexico are a solid team with pace on the flanks. Perhaps they lack a really deadly forward. But Argentina have definitely got a stuff-up in them somewhere. They are not a flawless machine, but instead an optimistic team built on its forward strengths and the belief in setting out attempting to win rather than avoiding defeat.
With England out, I could quite happily follow either of these two (gone off Holland; and unmoved by all the urgings to support Ghana solely for reasons of African-ness).
7.10pm: Sarah Rothwell notes:" I'm guessing they're talking about his jumping ability, but I still can't visualize Oscar "El Conejo" Perez as a rabbit. Maybe he's taken to asking "What the #$@% up with this Doc?" because his sub on the bench (and predecessor) has all the big name endorsement deals if the ads on Univision are anything to go by." I think it's the teeth. He is a peculiar specimen: oddly chubby-looking but still massively agile. It's a neat combo.
7.13pm: Lovely shots of Maradona waltzing off the team bus like a small, sweating, nimble-footed, oiled and mulletted gaucho good time boy. He seemed to be singing something. The man is having an extremely good time.
7.18pm: Here the teams:
Argentina: Romero, Demichelis, Burdisso, Heinze, Otamendi, Di Maria, Mascherano, Maxi, Higuain, Messi, Tevez
Mexico: Perez, Rodriguez, Salcido, Marquez, Osorio, Juarez, Torrado, Guardado, Hernandez, Giovani, Bautista
So Hernandez of Manchester United stars in favour of the sorry Blanco. And Messi, Tevez and Higuain will scamper with purpose up front for Argentina. What a wonderful attack that is, with Di Maria behind them too.
7.22pm: Very glad this game is on now - and with these two teams. There is always an odd deflation when England go out, even when they absolutely deserved it and were nothing but tournament also-rans. Hopefully a nice cleansing of the palate is in store. The players are walking out to the weirdly childish World Cup oompah-style anthem. Argentina have the carefree swagger of a group of men off out on their way to a night club.
7.24pm: Anthems. Maradona looks tearful and, peculiarly, as ever a lot like my equally well-groomed and piously chubby-faced Hungarian grandmother. the Mexican anthem is as ever a foot-stomping Sergio Leone Western-inflected joy.
7.27pm: Ramya Mohan notes: "I removed Messi from my fantasy teams- surefire way of getting him to score". He seems due, the scamp. Mexico will be extremely tight on him in midfield. I imagine they will try to keep it scoreless for a bit.
7.29pm: On Maradona resembling family members Raj Datta writes: "The day after The Goal my dad (then 55) got a call from a longlost friend from college days - who had called to say Maradona looked, and PLAYED like Dad." I'm glad it's not just me. Anyone else?
1 mins: Mexico kick off and, oddly attempt a kind of mid-1990s Premier League punt down the left wing. It doesn't work. It looks like Marquez is on Messi, just in front of the back four. He wins the ball and tries to feed the scampering sulky teenage girl-a-like Dos Santos, but it runs out of play.
3 mins: Mexico keep the ball for a bit, scuttling neatly in midfield. They look agreeably bandy-legged in their long white socks. And they have such ease on the ball. The excellent (here) Dos Santos in particular seems as good an example as you'd need that Premier League and international football are very different. Meanwhile, "I suspect that, despite Nike's continuing influence on my television, the percentage of English lads born with the name Wayne will be decreasing in the near future. As will the use of the names David, John, Matthew, Jamie, Glen, James, Aaron, Frank, Steven, Emile, Ashley and (thank god) Gareth," notes Clay Campbell, whose parents liked The Wire.
6 mins: Play has stopped while the ref signals for someone to clean an enormous streamer off the pitch. Perez does it while hundreds of stewards watch and refuse to help, presumably all taking time out from their day jobs in the Wandsworth branch of Argos. We're back on again.
8 mins: first glimpse of Messi coming forward and running right at the heart of the Mexican defence in thrilling fashion, but he's up and forced out to the left and eventually stopped. And... wow down the other end in a jiffy and Salcido hits the bar with an absolutely spanked shot from about 30 yards. that was dipping and I think it was tipped on to the bar by Romero. Then moments later Guardado breaks down the left and fires a very neat, low backlift shot that fizzes just by the post. Brilliant little spell from Mexico .
11 mins: This is a lovely game already. Very lose and open, with both teams attacking in numbers. Mexico are in now way over-awed. They're whatever the opposite is - under-awed, or maybe even simply awed. Messi has a little mazy and inks a hopeful chip that the leaping Perez palms down a bit unconvincingly. Kim Lima wonders: "Doesn't Maradona look a bit like Erik Estrada "Ponch" of CHIPs?" As does, or did, my aged Hungarian grandmother.
13 mins: Argentina have the game's first corner, whihc ends up with Di Maria having a shot that Burdisso misses out on deflecting goalwards with his heel. Mexico break quickly and Hernandez makes some space before slicing a powerful shot that flies wide. He is a fine player. Reminds me of Ole Solskjaer a bit. And controversy: Will Oliver purrs: "Have Argentina been playing in blue shorts before now? It's a nice look." While Pangeran Siahaan splutters: "Is it just me or Argentina's blue trunks look like a contender for World Cup fashion crime?" I quite like them. They look a bit like swimming shorts.
16 mins: Some really heavy tackles flying in on Messi by the way. The ref has already had a word, but clearly this is a bit of a tactic. So long as it's hard but fair, I think it;s a good one. No doubt Messi gets a fair amount of protection Barcelona. Mexico are going to test his mettle, but he is a brave player too. Things have settled down a bit. Some of that "possession football" we hear so much about going on. No. Beats me too.
19 mins: Argentina briefly dominating possession. They have a greta rhythm across midfield. And Michael Aston is drinking it all in like a woman in an advert blissfully sniffing a particularly cheap and nasty air freshening spray: "WOW, this game is mighty entertaining and as you say, quite the tonic after todays humiliation, it's not fair that they pass and control the ball so well tho'"
22 mins: Yes, Michael Aston, I consider it cheating. Perez hoofs the ball right through to Romero. and a breather is being taken here. It is utterly removed from what we saw earlier. Some people out there are even not running around all the time. Heinze does well to get forward but he can't win a corner. Rory Saunders points out :"Good job there are no over hyped players from the Nike advertising campaign on show here tonight....(Ribery, Cannavaro, Rooney, Ronaldinho isn't even there, next is Ronaldo to crash out after a meek performance against Spain)". And Patrick Cullen has briefly unlatched his doors of perception :"In another, slightly different and possibly better reality, I'd like to see Argentina in white shorts and Mexico in red ones, I think they'd go well with those green shirts they've got. That's a nice green..."
24 mins: Guardado bumps into Messi again and in fact barges him over. Free kick. Messi will not be put off by this. But will it disrupt him? Not exactly a hatchet job being carried out, but lots of hustling.
26 mins: ARGENTINA SCORE! Carlos Tevez gets it. Messi was at the heart of it. A lovely little pass through to Tevez, the ball is blocked by Perez, Messi dinks it forward again and Tevez nods it in. Looking at the replays, however, Tevez was clearly offside. A mass of Mexican players protest. But the goal will stand, albeit wrongly so.
28 mins: Amazing scenes here. Mexico are furious about the goal, which should not have been allowed, and which was almost, for a second or two, in the process of being chalked off after a replay was shown on the big screen. That is also not allowed of course. Marquez is booked for a foul on Messi. I'm afraid it's another technology-debate-stoking balls-up.
30 mins: Marquez goes in very hard again on Tevez and he's going to have ot be very careful. Might have been off for that. This is a terrible blow for Mexico. It's hard enough stopping Argentina score legitimate goals and they had done very well for the opening half hour. Kester Lovelace, who has emerged from the pages of a Los Angeles 1950s detective novel, asks "was Tevez more offside than Lampard's shot was over the line?" About the same.
33 mins: ARGENTINA SCORE AGAIN! Terrible mistake by Osorio. Really awful. Like something out of a grainy bloopers DVD. But greta work from Higuain too as he picks up an embarrassingly scuffed attempt at a sideways pass 30 yards from goal, skips forward , rounds the keeper and slips it in. He's scored again and Argentina, with some help, are all over this now.
35 mins: Mexico are pouring forward, but a little frantically. Argentina break quickly and, blimey, Osorio makes another terrible mistake, giving the ball straight to Tevez, who skips forward and floats a cross over that just evades Messi six yards out. Mexico really do need to calm down. Instead they're nearly three down as Di Maria breaks through on the left and has a fine low shot that Perez dives to palm away. Cripes. This could be a walloping. Howard Davies notes lugubriously, "With all these missed referee decisions its a good thing this isn't a major tournament. I'm sure FIFA will have it all sorted out when something important is on the line."
39 mins: Free kick to Mexico near the corner of the Argentina box, but Guardado smashes it over the bar. Every single Mexican looks a bit crazed right now. They have been hard done by but they need to have a moment and relax a little. Gary Naylor is cross: "Officiating started poorly and has got worse and worse. I have never seen it so bad in 36 years. I find it, literally, unbelievable that these errors are being made." Is it worse? This always happens. We just seem to jump on it more now. Bjorn Lubbers for example: "being a supporter of the German side, I was deeply embarrassed by the goal which wasn't given. Now when the ref between Mexico and Argentine walked to his linesman, for a fraction of a second I thought we might have a life introduction of live video evidence.. watching the linesman obviously receiving instructions (was he?) I thought FIFA might grow a backspine at last.. only to see the shameful decision for a goal that was indeed offside."
42 mins: Tevez is fouled again. He and Messi will have white and blue striped legs at the end of this. And Higuain should have scored there. A lovely cross from the right by Maxi Rodriguez, Higuain rises unmarked and his header is skewed horribly wide of the far post. to channel Geoff Boycott for a moment, my ancient and in fact deceased Maradona-lookalike Hungarian grandmother could have put that away.
44 mins: Juarez has been getting some joy against Heinze on the left. that is perhaps Mexico's best hope. And Silver Fox is getting carried away :"If today doesn't bring about changes in the use of technology for disputed goals then nothing will. Human error has led to the destiny of 2 games being altered." That is perhaps not strictly true. Germany were vastly superior to England today. It was a terrible mistake but they would have won that game either way.
45+1 mins: Best chance of the half for Mexico. The excellent Salcido puts in a lovely cross that Hernandez gets a toe on hurtling forwards, but the ball flies straight into the midriff of Romero. A bit lucky that. Could have changed things significantly before half time.
45+2 mins: HALF TIME. Mexico walk off protesting to the officials and, oh blimey, it's all kicking off down on the Argentina bench as the Mexicans walk past. Maradona leaps in and appears to be playing the peace-maker. And there we are: Argentina are well ahead in this game now. But the talk will all be about the mistake for the goal.
Simon McDonnell is, meanwhile, having his own technological drama: "Sitting in a Ryanair plane on the tarmac in girona airport north of Barca following your commentary. We've taken off once and returned due to bird strike. Second take off abandoned due to distressed child. I'm relaying developments in the game to my fellow passengers. The air steward has just begun his third safety demonstration and invited us to join in! Spirit of the blitz, etc. One passanger has speculated that the plane actually crashed and we are now in hell! Come on Mexico!" Watch it. Ryanair will charge you for that.
So, just for the record: Mexico have been robbed here. The opening goal was offside. Against protocol there was an instant replay on the big screen. For a second it looked like the ref would change his mind. Then he sobered up and didn't. Cue endless debates about technology and also a mini riot as the teams traipsed off. Back in ten mins.
Geoffrey Smith writes:" "Yes, Germany started better and yes they ended miles better, and yes they've been better than England ever since they arrived in South Africa but you cannot just assume they would have kept their nerve after giving up a two-goal lead in the space of three minutes. Goals change matches." They pretty much are matches. But it seemed clear, I thought, Germany were far more likely to get more of them whatever England did - as they did.
Roy Allen hits back at Gary Naylor's nay-saying: "Contrary to the incessant whinging from the high horse merchants the officiating at this world cup has been very good. Today we have seen two very bad mistakes but in the past two weeks we have heard a lot of ill-informed bleating about good decisions. Gary Naylor has rarely been more wrong. I'm with you; refereeing has improved, but whinging about it has reached new heights."
Art Delano writes, a little desperately: "Here in southeast Michigan we've been under severe thunderstorm warnings for an hour, and there have been tornado funnel clouds spotted in multiple towns, and there are large-scale power blackouts. Even worse, the local broadcaster carrying the game, after interrupting multiple times to report on storm activity, has been knocked off the air. We now have to watch the match on the Spanish-language Univision channel. The last I would have no problems with if I spoke Spanish. But please keep in mind that for many of us you are the only means by which we can make sense of what's going on between Argentina and Mexico right now." Righto. noted.
And John Cashman argues: "I think Maradona looks more like post-spiderhole Saddam Hussein than Ponch Estrada."
46 mins: Argentina kick off again. And Buatista is off, replaced by Barrera on on the left wing. An attacking move. He's a livewire. Barrera instantly wins a corner but Torrado's kick is easily headed away. Good positive start though. And Hank Janson has the right idea: "it is certainly time for FIFA to implement technology to betterr the quality of officiating, barney. now, when do they start on developing the technology to knock 20 years of pierluigi colina?"
48 mins: Absolute howler from long-haired prancing fraud Di Michelis, presenting the ball straight to Hernandez, but he does well to get back inside his own box and block his shot. There is hope for Mexico in that Argentina backline. They are far from impermeable. john Delany growls from beneath his trilby: "Art Delano would be my adopted name if I ever became a salso trumpet player." And William Booth fumes: "Delano is talking out of his Art. Referring and line-running at this world cup has been dreadful. Three things are spoiling the tournament - incorrect decisions, diving/exaggeration, and unpunished bad tackling, and they are all to some extent the fault of the officials."
51 mins: Barrera is making a few things happen on the left wing. He gets into some space again but his dinked ball goes to the back post when all the green shirts have crowded the near. Argentina have yet to really get going this half.
52 mins: ARGENTINA SCORE! 3-0. Well. They have now. That is an absolutely brilliant strike by Tevez. The ball falls to him after a bit of a muddle 25 yards out, he sizes up the moment and spanks it first time with awesome power into the top corner, making at least three people within earshot of this commentator emit an involuntary "Oooayaeea!" sound. The keeper had no chance at all. That was stunning. Maradona does a James Brown style freak out, and quite rightly too.
54 mins: So. Going they are. Mexico look downcast now and the stadium is a riot of blue and white bed-sheet waving. Argentina are simply irresisitible in attack, I think we can say they would be fine champions. Tevez is almost in for a hat trick after another mix-up by the Mexican defence but Juarez gets back to rob him at the last. Oh dear. Mexico really are having one I'm afraid.
57 mins: Mexico really struggling to keep it together here. If you can get a look at that Tevez goal. Sure to cheer you up if you watched the England-related events with any snese of eager expectation.On England and the Lampard non-goal Pavan Jeswani barks: "I despise the England team as much as every other person on the planet who is not English, but if that goal was given, England wouldn't have had to press forward as much and wouldn't have been so fragile on the break. It might not have changed the result, but you do not know that for certain. This isn't getting published is it?" But Nick Smith disagrees: "Re: England- surely there are two points about todays game; 1 even if the goal stood it would have masked deep structural defects in the English game; 2 Englands Brave John Jerry is a glorified stopper and nothing more. When he's not even doing that he's just a cockney tit being paid 120K for appearing in tabloids. We may as well play Jordan at centre back."
60 mins: Brilliant play by Berrera on the left wing, beats two men, nutmegging Burdisso, but then shoots from a very tight angle and hits the side netting. He had three green shirts to aim for there. That was sprightly. Guardado comes off. Franco comes on against his semi-compatriots. And it would be nice if Mexico could rustle up a goal here. Salcido has a pop from miles out and it's on target and Romero flies to his right to palm it round, ponytail flapping wildly.
63 mins: Hernandez gets up well but head powerfully over from the resultant corner. He has a nice sprightly spring and a pleasantly eager face. I predict success in the Premier League (or more likely Carling Cup and occasional Champions League dead rubber). And Jeremy James sums up the general - but I have to say, not my - view of all this: "Two absolutely appalling decisions that have wrecked two quarter finals. FIFA need to get their act together - if not technology, at the least four linesemen who understand the rules and/or a second ref watching the television who can tell the field ref when he has cocked up. What is going on makes a travesty of the game. Sod 'to err being human.'"
66 mins: Mexico continue to huff and grouch and meander and generally lose their way, albeit in an elegant and neatly stitched kind of way. Shame to see them going out, but this is largely a young team and should get better. This is now a game of pass and dink and jink and stroll. And Gary Naylor rages back :The officiating has been dismal because the big calls have been wrong too often. Many penalties have not been awarded (remember David Villa being tripped in Spain's first game?) Red cards have been awarded for minor, even non-existent offences (Kaka, Cahill). Still - at least they start the games
when the adverts finish."
69 mins: Tevez strolls off and the wonderfully aged, strolling, leggy Veron is on. Maradona hugs Tevez and buries his nose hungrily in his soaking mane.
70 mins: Mexico so close to scoring: the ball comes in from the right wing and is headed goalwards by Franco but Heinze heads it off the line, just as the ball appears to be crossing it, and that is a good decision. Close, but we really don't need another of those.
71 mins: MEXICO SCORE! 3-1. Lovely, really lovely goal by Hernandez. Turns brilliantly away from Di Michelis, jinks into the box, makes a bit more space and then absolutely spanks it into the top corner at the near post. That was brilliant finishing. He's a really tasty player. And Mexico have some new vim out there now.
73 mins: Well, nothing is impossible and Mexico are re-invigorated. You did feel when Tevez came off there was some slightly too early backslapping going on. Messi has also done nothing this half. Elsewhere John Delaney sagely notes: "On England and the Lampard non-goal; If it did go in and England managed to sneak a win against Germany can you imagine the gaping width and depth of the new [hem-de-hem orifice censorship activated] that Argentina would tear us in the quarter finals?" indeed. A big one indeed.
76 mins: Mexico have had a good spell of possession besides the goal, but perhaps more a case of a loss of focus by Argentina. There's Messi at last, off on a mazy, wiffling dribble that comes to nought. And Keenan Robbins spits: "No one really thinks Maradona is coaching this team, do they? One of the 'assistants' (blanking on the name) is clearly giving instructions to substitutes before they go in and, one can only assume, drawing up the tactics as well." Carlos Bilardo is the man, I hear.
78 mins: The Championship's Jonas Gutierrez is about to come on. And to be fair to Messi he has come inside a bit to find the ball and he's having some decent possession, slowing things down quite deliberately. Gutierrez is on for Di Maria. And Lou Roper summarises: "The 'offside' Argentinian goal is particularly insufferable 1) because Signor Rosetti is another highly overrated Italian referee (as in Collina) who makes a great show of 'imposing himself' and then commits howlers; and 2) it rewards serial cheaters Tevez and you-know-who. In terms of England, despite Lampard's 'goal', a 1-2 half-time scoreline does not, it seems to me unrecoverable unless you are employing a number of has-beens or never-weres in your XI. Oh."
81 mins: Salcido finds great pampas plains of space on the left wing and puts in a cross that is deflected for a corner. Barerra takes a short one and puts in a lovely cross that floats though the six-yard box and is eventually headed clear by Heinze. Really good defending that. Looked a certain goal. Brave stuff too as he received a swipe on the conk for his troubles. and Ian M is watching the BBC: "Is anyone else fed up with the constant, sarky sniping at Maradona by Lineker et al? It's just so irritating...none of them have achieved half of what maradona has in the game , what do they have to be smug about?" Linker might have a proper gripe. I believe Seedorf called him " a great person", which I find cheering.
84 mins: Heinze is in a bit of pain here. He likes his great heroic Superman-style dives a lot. He does another here, hurtling through the air like some leotarded human cannon ball and landing on his, ahem, glutes. He struggles to his feet looking ruffled. James Cantarella, like an inner city Baltimore street hobo, likes an easy fix: "Each team gets 3 "challenges" per game, if the refs initial call is upheld, the team loses a substitution. If it's reversed, then everyone will at least feel confident that the right call was made. Crap calls have far too much influence on the game to not do something about them. This is an *easy* fix."
86 mins: Just looking at Hernandez's goal again: it is a real cracker. He is extremely nimble on his feet. Here's Salcido again having perhaps his 6th or 7th shot of the night but this is a real brick and it flies miles wide. David Keith is sceptical:" "Still not convinced by this argie side, their defense looks pretty rank, especially from set pieces and but for some culpable refereeing and daft mistakes, their frontline has generally been dealt with with ease." Hmm. Not sure about that. They have looked irresistible sparingly. Romero flumps down on another over-hit Mexican through pass, almost ruffling his immaculately sculpted beard.
89 mins: Mexico, let it be said, are finishing the stronger here and they deserve some credit for their gumption. Really hard to tell what would have happened if that goal had been disallowed. It did throughly discombobulate them. The game was even at the time. But Argentina still managed to make them pay for their wobble and they deserve some credit for that. And there's Messi finally having a shot after jibbling though two tackles. His shot is palmed over quite easily. And anonymous pretty much sums up my feelings on Maradona, although without the real hate: "I used to hate the guy. Like a real hater. The more I look at him though, standing there in his suit with his stomach staple, cocaine nose and tax debts, the more I think - this man had a hell of a crack at life." Got to love him. He is pure crazed enthusiasm.
90+1 mins: FULL TIME. And Argentina have won 3-1. The best team won, in the end, but they won with some unnecessary extra help. Mexico will feel scandalised by the opening goal, but there was some lovely stuff after that and two fine goals from Tevez and Hernandez. Argentina will play Germany in the quarters and that really will be something. Thanks for all your emails and that's all from me for now. Barney.