When the final whistle blew in New Jersey, several Argentine players, including Lionel Messi, fell to the turf.
The rest stood motionless as Spain’s players ran around the field in glee.
Rodri, who was substituted in extra time, ran out of the dugout to join his teammates.
As the Manchester City midfielder walked past Molina, the Argentine defender appeared to hit Rodri in the arm or stomach.
It was the fuse that sparked the disaster.
Rodri stood up to Molina, but it was the Argentine international who pushed forward aggressively.
Garcia ran over to support his teammate before Paredes intervened, striking Garcia in the throat.
Unused substitute Gavi tried to intervene but was forced to the ground by Almada.
Paredes then pushed Gavi to the floor, placing his hand on the Spaniard’s face.
Ayala then appeared to have Garcia by the throat. He then appeared to hit Spain midfielder Dani Olmo.
“Paredes threw two or three haymakers at someone’s face. He lunged at them,” Alan Shearer said in a BBC One report. “There is no place or space for this.
“We know how much it means to them and we know how much it hurts to lose, but there is a way to lose. We have seen this too many times in Argentina. The reaction after the final whistle is terrible.”
Joe Hart added: “The game is over, they can have absolutely no complaints about what happened today. Disgusting behavior.”
But Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, who tried to calm the situation, appeared to downplay the incidents in his post-match interview.
“We are merciful in victory, and we must be merciful in defeat,” he said. “Today we show that we know how to lose.
“We lost the match and we accept that, but that doesn’t mean we stop living or forget everything we did to get here.”