Lionel Messi mesmerizes with his left-foot magic against Mexico in a FIFA World Cup thriller
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Lionel Messi, Image Credits: @afaseleccion
Diego Maradona must have been smiling from above at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar, late on Saturday night. Maverick Maradona died on Novemeber25, 2020. A day after his second death anniversary, the men in white and blue would have invoked God, and the Hand of God, to defeat Mexico in the FIFA World Cup group match.
This match was as much about survival for the team from Latin America as well as the legacy of Lionel Messi. Well, champions respond when under pressure. To say that Messi and a man who he is compared with daily, Cristiano Ronaldo, are under scrutiny would be stating the obvious.
Messi scored in the first match as well when Argentina was shamed 2-1 by Saudi Arabia. It was a match after which there was a national holiday in the oil-rich nation and mourning back home in Buenos Aires and other cities in Argentina. We heard the loud Aargh when Argentina lost. Oh, how tough it was to get over it, in the heart and mind.
Well, Messi and Enzo Fernandez responded brilliantly, the first solo and then in tandem. To say that Messi has to deliver would be like asking Virat Kohli to score runs for India in the World Cup. Fans have got so used to seeing both these maestros perform, the expectations from Messi are hard. He has to score the belief as well as the expectation.
Wearing the trademark No. 10 shirt, his arms all in tattoos, Messi let his left foot do the talking. Watching anyone show footwork with the left one has its mystique. When we talk of right-handers and left-handers in sports, the connotations are different. Yet, there is no connection really to say that a left-hander will use his left foot as the master foot for creativity. Roberto Carlos, Paolo Maldini, Ryan Giggs, and Johan Cryuff, were all left-footers who showed genius.
Lionel Messi and Argentina bounce back after loss to Saudi Arabia and will hope to keep the momentum going in the Qatar World Cup
One man who showed the best skills, deftness, cunning, and a left-foot death kick to disastrous effect for the rival teams was Maradona. He could tease, he could torment, and tear apart the rival defense in his heydays. Maybe, that is why so often comparisons are made between Maradona and Messi, two players who enjoy a status like that of a presiding deity in Argentina There are similarities for sure, though, as a disciplinarian, Messi is a clean guy.
Messi flopped in the first match, yes, the word flopped was used, as he and Di Maria were unable to tear apart the Saudis. On Saturday, Messi did not want any slap on his wrist. He showed his magical left foot, literally. For all those who watched those two seconds of action, it was a trance. Messi was near the edge of the penalty area and used one touch to stop the ball dead before the next touch found the ball bulging the bottom corner after beating the goalkeeper.
Boy, what a response there was from the Argentines in the stand, almost like a rhapsody. This was just part of the job done, scoring the first goal. It eased the pressure on Messi and his teammates. At the same time, this goal helped him add one more line to the record books. Gabriel Batistuta holds the record for the most goals for Argentina in the World Cup, 10. He is followed by Diego Maradona and Guillermo Stabile (eight goals each). This was Messi’s eighth goal, which certainly was worth celebrating for his fans. Everyone knows this will be his last World Cup. At 35, he is past prime, or so we thought. If you watch that goal again, the eighth in his World Cup against Mexico, you will be forced to change your views.
Certainly, he is not the same Messi we saw in his first World Cup. To say age has caught up would be foolish as he has scored in two out of two matches till now in Qatar. The ask from fans is whether he and Di Maria can continue to jam up and wreck the rivals. After that sinking feeling against Saudi Arabia, the revival has come like a sandstorm blowing in the desert. Certainly, this effort from Messi on Saturday has kicked up a storm. This time for the better and not a controversy. “It was a weight off our shoulders,” Messi said later.
Back to remembering Maradona, outside the Lusail Stadium on Saturday, the unofficial Maradona song played, “Life is Life,” over the public address system speakers. Yes, there is life for Messi and his fans. Nobody wants to see Argentina go out early from the World cup.
Also Read: 2022 FIFA World Cup Croatia v Canada: Preview, Team News, Possible Line Ups, and Prediction
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S Kannan
(382 Articles Published)