Emi Martinez and Argentina are just one game away from winning the World Cup (Picture: Getty)

Emiliano Martinez has played down concerns Lionel Messi is carrying an injury and is confident the Argentinean maestro will be fit for Sunday’s World Cup final.

Messi delivered a virtuoso man of the match display last night, inspiring Lionel Scaloni’s men to a comprehensive 3-0 win over Croatia.

Argentina will now compete for a third World Cup crown against either Morocco or France, but the fitness of their talisman is likely to dominate the pre-match build-up.

Messi was seen clutching his hamstring during the opening stages and appeared in a huge amount of discomfort but battled on to deliver one of his most iconic performances in an Argentina shirt.

Asked about Messi’s condition after the game, Aston Villa goalkeeper Martinez said: ‘No, no [he’s not injured].

‘We played 120 minutes against Holland, it was a hard game for him but you can see he wants to finish every game. Physically he’s really good and he’s man of the match every game.’

A place in the final looked a remote possibility when Argentina were shocked by Saudi Arabia in their opening group game and were locked in a goalless stalemate with Mexico at half-time in their next match.

Argentina fans will be praying Lionel Messi is fit enough to play in Sunday’s World Cup final (Picture: Getty)

Messi’s goal in that contest has changed the course of Argentina’s tournament, however, and Martinez is struggling to comprehend the transformation.

He added: ‘I can’t believe it we lost the first game all of sudden everything was upside down we lost the 36-game unbeaten run.

‘Mexico the first half was a bit sloppy everyone wanted us to lose everyone wanted us to lose. We’re all fighters and we’ve got 45million Argentineans all behind us.

‘We feel the crowd on the streets every time we play we feel like we are at home we are so happy to have them.’

On who he would prefer to play in the final, he said: ‘Whoever!

‘They both had an incredible run they both different teams both really whoever comes it’s a World Cup final and know it’s going to be hard.’

MORE : Luis Suarez pays tribute to ‘incredible’ Lionel Messi as Argentina reach World Cup final