Hannes Halldorsson

The former Iceland goalkeeper looks back on his proudest moment in football

After making my debut for the national team, I set myself a target of reaching 50 caps and, incredibly, I got there by playing in the biggest game in Iceland's history.

We'd never been to the World Cup before and we were the smallest country to ever qualify. Facing a giant like Argentina made the experience even more special. The World Cup is the biggest stage for any footballer and this game changed my life. It's defined me, and my career, ever since.

Regardless of everything else I've done, I'll always be known as the guy who saved a penalty from Lionel Messi! We wanted to make ourselves, and the people of Iceland, proud. We had a really good team and knew that we could give anybody a game after reaching the quarterfinals of the Euros two years earlier. But we also knew that, if we weren't at our best, we could get crushed. Argentina's front line was terrifying, so that risk of humiliation was always in the back of our minds.

In one of the pre-match meetings, we were shown a montage of Messi and the unbelievable pressure on his shoulders.