Messi and his hottest night, against Van Gaal, the referee and everything that stands in the way of his World Cup illusion

It will be one of those World Cup days that will remain forever in everyone’s memory. For how the classification was given in the semifinals. For the big game that the Selection. Because he was rightly winning 2-0. For that draw in the tenth! discount minute that left everyone on the verge of a heart attack. For Dibu shortcuts. But mostly because it was another night, here in Qatar, where Lionel Messi gave a performance that will be talked about for a long time.

The captain once again showed himself the face of leader of a team that is not willing to disappoint an entire country, which pushed and endured him for a while. Messi attended. Messi scored his own goal, from a penalty, with which he joined Gabriel Omar Batistuta as Argentina’s top scorer at the World Cup, with 10 goals. Messi fought. Messi ran. Messi fought. And Messi celebrated.

All this in 120 thrilling minutes and a penalty that not even he failed. The 10 albiceleste played a separate duel. The days before, he had heard Louis Van Gaal, the Dutch coach, say something that made him angry: “Messi doesn’t play much with the opponent when he has possession. Even there, our chances are.”

That’s why the best player in the world he dedicated the Topo Gigio to Riquelme in celebration of the 2-0. He stopped in front of the Dutch bank and put his hands to his ears. “Van Gaal sells that he plays football and put tall people and started throwing balls,” he said after a very hot match with several clashes between the players of one team and another.

“There have been situations where things have happened that shouldn’t have happened on the pitch. It’s part of football, it was the quarter-finals of a World Cup and both teams wanted to be in the semis. Luckily it happened to us,” he explained Leo, calmer now but not forgetting what he didn’t like at all.

“Everything happened, there was a lot of tension and a lot of nervousness on both sides. There was a lot of talk before the match, something we didn’t really like because we felt they had disrespected us. It’s a bit of a sauce of football,” he added. in a mixed area in front of the graphic media.

It came from yelling “What are you looking at, you fool!” Outside Weghorst, the 19th Dutchman who came on in the second half and scored both goals for his team. “He has provoked us since he entered, he has beaten us, he has told us things and this is not part of football, I always respect everyone and they have not respected us,” he reiterated hotly.

But then he concentrated on the most important thing, the standings: “We suffered too much. With the score 2-0 we could have finished in 90 minutes. They didn’t do anything, they just set up and hit balls. They complicated us in that way and even the referee didn’t help much, that put us in extra time,” he analyzed.

“It was a great relief. To be among the best four in the world is something spectacular. After losing the last World Cup and leaving a bitterness, being among the best four again is something very beautiful for us, for the people and for the country. We will try to continue taking small steps,” said La Pulga, who in addition to catching up with Bati has surpassed other brands.

With this match he is already the player who has captained the national team several times at the World Cup: 17. Surpassed Diego Maradona (16). The pass that gave Nahuel Molina to make it 1-0 was his seventh assist in this competition, he was one behind Diego (8). Leo is also the Argentine with the most minutes on the pitch at the World Cup, with 2.013. Behind him were Javier Mascherano (1,920) and Maradona (1,917). Another information: his goal, the fourth in Qatar 2022, was the 2,700th goal in the history of the World Cup.

“I knew about Bati and I’m happy that I can live up to a scorer like Bati, a historic scorer like he was for us,” Messi said of this new individual level he surpassed in a night in which he showed an explosive version.

“I suffered a lot on penalties. We suffered too much because we went to penalties unfairly”, repeated Rosario’s man as he paraded in front of the media a few meters from the arrival on the bus to return to the University of Qatar and rest.

Surely it won’t be easy to fall asleep because the adrenaline won’t go down just like that. “I don’t remember exactly what I said to Dibu, but we knew he would have answered like this. He has done it again. He’s always a beast on penalties and today he answered again”, laughs the 10 Emiliano Martínez passing by behind him and kisses his hand head.

Lionel Messi lives his best days dressed in blue and white. On and off the field, he is that Argentine leader who plays, infects, pushes, doesn’t shut up, responds, resists what he considers unfair and shows his face in front of him.

A unique Messi who will forever be talked about in every football talk, in every corner café. Whatever happens, this Messi will be remembered as the fantastic captain of a team that deserves everything that comes his way.

Lusail, Qatar. Special delivery.