Champions League finalist and Argentina coach, 53, punches Dani Olmo in FACE as Spain World Cup final tensions boil over

FANS were left gobsmacked after Argentina coach Roberto Ayala appeared to throw a punch at Spain’s Dani Olmo after the World Cup final. Tempers exploded after Spain beat Argentina 1-0 after extra time in New Jersey to lift the trophy, thanks to Ferran Torres’ 106th-minute winner. Roberto Ayala appeared to hit out at Dani Olmo after full-time Credit: x.com/davidjaca Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in the final to claim the world title Credit: x.com/davidjaca The final whistle sparked ugly scenes as players, coaches and backroom staff seemed to be involved in various melees on the pitch. Former Valencia defender Ayala, now one of Lionel Scaloni’s assistant coaches, appeared to completely lose his cool as footage on social media showed him swinging an arm towards Olmo’s throat. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Ayala won 115 caps for Argentina and enjoyed a glittering club career with River Plate, Napoli, AC Milan and Valencia before hanging up his boots. But the 53-year-old fell from grace after he appeared to catch Olmo around the face before Spain defender Eric Garcia rushed over to drag the pair apart. Olmo did not appear to hit back as players tried to restore some order. Ayala’s flashpoint was just one of several as Argentina’s frustration boiled over after seeing their hopes of retaining the World Cup ripped away. Midfielder Leandro Paredes was shown a red card after slamming into Garcia and Gavi, while Nahuel Molina also became involved in a series of confrontations. Watching on, BBC pundits Wayne Rooney and Joe Hart criticised Argentina’s behaviour, with Hart branding the scenes “disgusting”. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS After the final whistle several ugly scenes broke out Credit: x.com/davidjaca But he was sure to praise Lionel Messi after he was seen congratulating Spain’s players after full-time. Scaloni also stepped in to try and calm things down before admitting afterwards that Spain deserved to be crowned world champions. Emotions were running high for the Argentina boss who broke down in tears in his post-match press conference. The European champions created by far the better chances throughout with the holders spending much of the game trying to break up play. Enzo Fernandez was sent off moments before extra-time but it was Ferran Torres who finally made Spain’s dominance count in the 106th minute. He latched onto Nico Williams’ flick-on before drilling a close-range finish past Emi Martinez to seal the win. The defeat ended Argentina’s hopes of back-to-back titles. While, Spain completed a stunning double after following up their European Championship triumph under Luis de la Fuente. Fifa is expected to review the post-match scenes, including incidents missed by the officials during the chaos. Comment now