Lionel Messi is like water in the desert, Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella said after his team beat Belgium 1-0 to reach the World Cup semifinals on Saturday.

Four-time World Player of the Year Messi failed to score and even squandered a clear scoring chance in stoppage time as the South Americans did the bare minimum to reach the last four for the first time since 1990.

But his mere presence on the field appeared to inhibit Belgium, which was strangely cautious even when forced to chase the game after Gonzalo Higuain's early goal.