At the time, Argentina had fewer than 15 minutes to save themselves from elimination. Victor Moses' penalty had knocked them for six and they were staring down the abyss, meaning Sampaoli had to look at his options off the bench.
Cristian Pavón had already been brought on, but his thoughts turned to Aguero. Apparently however, he asked for a second opinion before bringing the striker on.
'TyC Sports' captured the moment where he appeared to ask the Barcelona star. He appeared to ask Messi: "Shall I put 'Kun' in?"
But, Messi did not seem to pay much attention to Sampaoli's words. Tagliafico was soon withdrawn and Aguero was partnered with Gonzalo Higuain up front.
All of this, combined with Messi's influence on the team, only seems to confirm the rumours that the former Sevilla manager has lost all control of his dressing room. It is no longer he who is making the decisions.
You can also look at the celebrations of the winning goal for further confirmation. Sampaoli was jubilant, celebrating wildly, but he was all alone.
27 June 2018