MOSCOW, June 17. /TASS/. The national football team of Iceland rolled out a solid defense against Argentina in their match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Moscow on Saturday, Argentina’s striker Lionel Messi told journalists.

The national teams of Argentina and Iceland exchanged spectacular offensives during their Group D opening match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, held on Saturday at the Spartak Arena in Moscow, but eventually finished their duel with 1-1 draw.

"We aimed for the win, but we failed as we scored a fast goal and the Icelanders tied the score," Messi told journalists after the game. "They were solid in defense, which was hard to penetrate and it was difficult to find a place there."

Deep into the second half of the match, a referee ordered a penalty shot against the team from Iceland and Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi stepped on the line to execute the shot, which was brilliantly saved by Iceland’s goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson to keep the game’s score at 1-1.

"Yes, we had a chance and I did not make a use of it," the Argentinian football star said. "We have deserved the victory, but at the moment we have time to relax and continue preparing for next matches."

Iceland was deemed by many football experts as an underdog of this championship packing many surprises, particularly after reaching the quarterfinals of the 2016 UEFA Euro Cup in France upsetting England on their way to the knockout stage.

Argentina is playing its next Group D match against Croatia on June 21 in Nizhny Novgorod, while Iceland is set to take on their group opponents Nigeria on June 22 in Volgograd.

A total of 32 national football teams are participating in the 2018 FIFA World Cup held in 11 cities across Russia between June 14 and July 15.

The teams were divided into eight groups, with four in each, and the top two from their relevant groups will proceed to the next round, known as the playoffs or the knockout stage, to keep vying for the much-coveted FIFA World Cup Trophy.

Russia is holding its first time ever edition of the FIFA World Cup, which kicked off in Moscow with a spectacular opening show at the Luzhniki Stadium on the night of June 14.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.