Argentina were made to suffer before landing their first World Cup title in 36 years, having been “kicked three times” and twice squandering a lead to France, including in extra-time before edging past the defending champions 4-2 on penalties in the final on Sunday.

“It was a game where we suffered,” said Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, the winner of the Golden Glove, who saved one penalty in the shootout on Sunday but had also saved two more spot kicks in their quarter-final against the Netherlands.

In what turned out to be an epic final packed with roller-coaster emotions, Argentina gave away a 2-0 lead in regular time as Martinez was beaten by Kylian Mbappe twice in the 80th and 81st minutes. Argentina again took the lead in extra-time with Lionel Messi’s second goal before the France forward completed his hat-trick to level 3-3 in the 118th minute as he converted France’s second penalty past the Argentina custodian to take the match to a shootout.

“I was calm during the penalties,” Martinez said in quotes reported on Argentina’s Twitter account. “They kicked me three times. Thank God later I did my thing, what I dreamed of.”

For Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, it was a nail-biting finish to a turbulent tournament.

“I cannot believe that we have suffered so much in a perfect game. Unbelievable, but this team responds to everything,” Scaloni, who also led the team to Copa triumph last year, said.

“I am proud of the work they did. It is an exciting group. With the blows we received today, with the draws, this makes you emotional. I want to tell people to enjoy, it’s a historic moment for our country.

“We who live for this and who have been through the good and the bad are used to these things... Above all it is an incredible enjoyment. Being at the top as we are now is something unique.”

It was the third world title for Argentina and the first since the late Diego Maradona won the trophy almost single-handedly in 1986.

For Argentina players and captain Messi, who netted twice in the 120 minutes before also scoring in the shootout, it was the biggest title of their careers.

“It is a moment that I will never erase in my life,” Enzo Fernandez, who won the Young Player award, said. “Having the chance to win theWorld Cup with my country is priceless. Let’s take the cup and celebrate together.”

Messi’s Argentine team had made the final in 2014 but on that occasion they finished second best to Germany.

“I’ll never forget it. We had to suffer but we deserved to win,” said Argentina defender Rodrigo De Paul. “We’ve beaten the last champions, it’s a joy I cannot put into words.”

Written with Reuters inputs