Lisandro Martinez takes his mother to meet Lionel Messi, it was a dream 'she never thought she'd achieve'

Lisandro Martinez brought his mother, Silvina, to meet Argentina teammate and national team captain Lionel Messi – and her reaction was so wholesome.

The 24-year-old defender, who earned a place in Argentina's 26-man World Cup squad after an impressive start to life at Manchester United, has played a key role in Albicelestes' journey to Tuesday's semi-final.

Lionel Scaloni's side will come up against underdogs Croatia at the Lusail Stadium after wins over the Netherlands, Australia, Poland and Mexico.

And many are expecting Martinez and co. to progress to the final, where they would meet either France or Morocco.

Martinez, who is expected to feature against Croatia on Tuesday night, is a real family man. After it was confirmed that he'd be in Argentina's World Cup squad in November, the United defender paid tribute to his family.

"I dreamed it so much, I visualised it, I asked for it, I wished it so much, and I felt it so much that today this immense dream that I had since I was a child comes true," he said.

"I remember when my parents gave me the national team shirt and I was so happy I was going to play ball in the neighborhood imagining I was one of the players.

"I am infinitely grateful to the most important people in my life who know that they are always in my heart! Let's all come together and more united than ever. Let's go Argentina."

And ahead of the tournament in Qatar, the centre-back decided to bring his mother, Silvina, to meet teammate and seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, Lionel Messi.

After they got a snap together in what appears to be a hotel lobby, Silvina posted the pictures to her Instagram page.

"A dream I never thought I would achieve," she wrote. "With the best in the world. Thank you, football master."

Martinez, who played a part in their dramatic penalty shoot-out win over the Netherlands last week, broke down in tears in his post-match interview interview as Argentina reached the World Cup semi-final.

“It was just incredible,” he told DEPORTV. “I just freed [when the final penalty was scored], because we didn’t deserve to end like that. We were much better than them. I want to hug everyone - the players, the coaching staff… everyone!”

Do you think Argentina will beat Croatia to reach the World Cup final?

Let us know in the comments.