Higuain for once outshone Lionel Messi, but Maradona's spiritual heir also provided a constant threat that kept Marc Wilmot's Belgium side on the back foot. Messi started off playing deep, seeing plenty of the ball and creating some good positions for his team-mates.
One such move put Ezequiel Lavezzi clear on the right and only Vincent Kompany's alert intervention prevented a goal. It took less than eight minutes however for Argentina to take a huge step towards the semi-final and it was Messi, twisting and turning in midfield, who was the architect.
His incisive pass to Angel di Maria was diverted to Higuain, taking a nick off a defender which caused the ball to bounce up for the Napoli striker to swivel and thump a first-time shot low into the corner from 25 yards out.
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