Argentinian fans have gone from fear of a possible elimination to fervor for a team that has finally appeared

From fear to fervor there was only one step here for the thousands of Argentine fans who filled the 974 stadium. And that one step to leave worry behind and give vent to hope was the impeccable production of the Argentina national team, who played his best game so far in this World Cup in Qatar to cross the Rubicon and reach the round of 16.

Is that the defeat against Saudi Arabia was a strong shock to the spirit. The relief had come with the victory over Mexico. But he still hovered over the mathematical possibility of being excluded and that factor played an important role in the mood of the fans, especially before the performance of the staggered in the port district of Ras Abu Aboud.

During the day there was great expectation for the large number of Argentines who were about to arrive at the stadium. Even among the community that put together a WhatsApp group during their stay at the World Cup, there was the ghost that many would go without a ticket. However, none of this happened. It’s just that, unlike the previous fervor seen at the Lusail Stadium debut, most of the crowd chose caution. There was too much respect for Robert Lewandowski and company. And it was no less: a priori he was the strongest rival of the group.

The only moment of celebration before the ball started rolling was experienced on the subway. The cars filled up in Msheireb, a sort of Northern Diagonal of the Qatar subways and there “I want to win the third” began to play, the hit of this World Cup, the one that has the melody of a well-known song by La Mosca . However, upon reaching the destination, things calmed down again. Measured celebration. Until there.

Perhaps it was the oppressive humidity that exalted the heat, the same one Lionel Messi scored as a factor once the game was over: it was the first pitch where the effect of the air conditioning was not felt. Perhaps because there was still a latent – and agonizing – fear that the story would not end as, fortunately, it did.

All this atmosphere was felt on the outskirts of 974. Apart from the band that always makes noise and attracts attention, the rest impatiently awaited the opening of the stadium doors without making too much noise. Panic tribunicus, we could say using a neologism and referring to the stage fright that Valdano always talked about.

The scene was different when the stands started to fill up. It was known that Argentines were in the majority. Poles barely appeared in a few small heaps distributed among the 44,000 seats they occupied. Being a majority served to encourage people. 974 is a smaller stadium in Lusail. Half, that’s right. And the breath, this time, made itself felt.

And the rest is already known history. The team had a brilliant night. And the fervor spread from the inside out. But the winger also played when Messi missed his penalty and the fans immediately came out to collect the save. In short, a moment of synergy that was enhanced when the goals and the classification arrived in the second half. The fear was already gone. Optimism is the way to go.

Doha, Qatar. Special envoys.