SAO PAULO: Having spent most of the last 12 months out of
favour at club level, Sergio Romero has emerged from the shadows at the World
Cup to star in Argentina's run to the final.
Romero saved twice in Wednesday's penalty shoot-out as
Argentina triumphed 4-2 against the Netherlands in the semi-final at Sao
Paulo's Corinthians Arena to progress to the final after a goalless 120
minutes.
Reduced to the role of spectator for much of a disppointing
match, the 27-year-old stepped forward to deny both Ron Vlaar and Wesley
Sneijder from the spot.
And with captain Lionel Messi quiet throughout the evening,
that allowed Romero to be hailed the hero, even if he admitted luck played its
part.
“Penalties are all about luck, that is the reality. I had
confidence and thanks to God it turned out well,” said the giant shot-stopper
after the match.
Romero has been an assured presence behind a solid Argentina
defence throughout the competition, and has kept clean sheets in all three
knockout matches.
His displays have been the perfect response to those at home
who suggested he should never have been called up in the first place by coach
Alejandro Sabella, far less chosen to play ahead of both Agustin Orion and
Mariano Andujar.
However, Romero's trajectory at club level over the past
year was hardly that of a player who was about to go all the way to the World
Cup final.
He left Italian side Sampdoria towards the end of last
summer's transfer window to join big-spending Monaco on a season-long loan.
When he arrived he expected to be the Ligue 1 side's
first-choice 'keeper, but coach Claudio Ranieri preferred Croatian Danijel
Subasic and Romero only made the first of his three league appearances in
April.
Otherwise, he had to settle for a handful of run-outs in
domestic cup games, but Sabella never lost faith in a player who won Olympic
gold with Argentina in Beijing in 2008.
“He helped me throughout what was the most difficult time of
my career, “Romero said on Wednesday in a show of gratitude to Sabella.
“It was the first year that I had spent sitting on the
bench. So I had to thank Alejandro for everything he did for me over the year.“
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