Argentina's Lisandro Martínez Departs World Cup Final vs. Spain Early Due To Injury

If Argentina is going to beat Spain in the 2206 FIFA World Cup Final, it'll have to do it without one of its top defenders. Lisandro Martinez departed Sunday's final right before halftime due to an apparent leg injury. It's unclear how the injury happened, but Martinez went down on the pitch during a break in play and remained down until he departed. Nicolas Otamendi replaced Martinez. Martinez has been a crucial player for Argentina in the World Cup. He started all but one match for Argentina in this World Cup, with his lone benching coming when his side had nothing to play for in its group play finale. Martinez also scored a goal in Argentina's round of 32 victory over Cape Verde. That goal was his second in international play, and he had an assist in that match. Sunday marked the Manchester United standout's 35th appearance for Argentina. As the match remained scoreless through halftime, Argentina made another substitution out of the break. It replaced forward Nicolas Gonzalez with midfielder Leandro Paredes. Paredes picked up a yellow card a few minutes after his entry.