Lionel Scaloni and the intimate party with his wife Elisa Montero, who appeared for the first time in front of the cameras

The Argentina national team showed its best against Croatia, beating an inspired Messi and a superlative Julián Álvarez, and reached the final. As after the victory against the Netherlands, Lionel Scaloni celebrated the standings with his family, but this celebration had a particularity: the presence of his wife, Elisa Montero, who is usually not seen in front of the cameras.

After signing the harrowing qualification against the Dutch, the telecast remained with Ian, Scaloni’s eldest son, who left the grandstand and celebrated his passage to the semi-finals in tears and in his father’s arms.

Ian, in the company of Noah, the youngest son of the native of Santa Fe, had been the protagonist of a video with a more than tender message in view of the World Cup, with a dedication to his father included. Now, the one who joins the celebrations is Elisa, Scaloni’s partner for more than a decade.

The coach of the Argentina national team met her way back in 2008, when she was still defending the colors of Mallorca. Scaloni’s stay on the Spanish island lasted just 18 months, but it was enough for the love story to begin.

After that brief experience in Spanish football, Scaloni returned to Italy to defend the colors of Atalanta, but this time accompanied by Elisa. This Tuesday, the Mallorcan native was seen in the stands of the Lusail Stadium and the networks filled with messages.

Against the Netherlands, Ian had taken the field to accompany his father in the celebrations. This time the DT changed formula and was instructed to go up to the stands, to settle in the area where his family was. In this way, the cameras remained with Lionel Scaloni, who took some time to enjoy and slow down with his wife and two children. Thus, for a brief moment, the DT decided to put aside his low profile that characterizes him so much, and shared his happiness with all Argentines.

Although on many occasions the DT chooses to keep his private life as far away from flashes as possible, from time to time he is encouraged to delve into his daily life. A few weeks ago, for example, Scaloni told Star + how he learned from at least one particular episode who he would become his wife.

“I met Elisa in Mallorca. It was very crazy because I had two months left on loan before returning to Lazio and I met her,” he said.

“I was 31 and she was 29. I had to row, I couldn’t find her phone. She didn’t go back to where I met her. Mallorca is a very small island, you go looking for contacts and eventually you arrive. She played volleyball and I found her. I said to her: “I like you, everything is fine, but I have to go back to Italy. What are you doing? Do you want to come back with me?” And the next day he told me yes, he would drop everything and come. We went to Rome and have been together for 15 years.”Scaloni explained.

Lionel also recounted that this love story would never have happened if it hadn’t been for a curious episode: “I went to play in England, a very good six months in which we played the FA Cup final against Liverpool, in Cardiff because Wembley was being redeveloped,” he began.

And he concluded: “We won 3-2, in the last minute the ball went to the far post and I scored Cissé. I hear him screaming in pain and I shot the ball out. It did me good because there was a minute to go , Cissé gets up and when they pull out the crossbar they pass it to my body and I turn it over, the Norwegian Riise receives it, changes it to the front, Gerrard grabs it from 40 meters and we draw 3-3 We went to penalties and lost, that’s why I didn’t renew with West Ham. If I had won that final, my wife and two sons Ian and Noah would not exist.”