AS his Argentina teammates rushed towards the corner to celebrate with goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, Lionel Messi strode to the side of the pitch and raised his arms. Relief at last, the World Cup glory at last.
Argentina had been pushed all the way by France and Kylian Mbappe in a compelling climax to the World Cup in Qatar, but they had emerged winners for the first time since 1986.
The 4-2 penalty shootout win after a 3-3 draw had seen Messi equal Diego Maradona in his last World Cup appearance. What a way it was to sign off and a glimpse of how much this meant to Messi came when he received the Golden Ball trophy for the best player of the tournament.
As he went to pose for photographers, he kissed the World Cup trophy on the way. He could do this now. He’d earned the right to do that. He would, a few moments later, lift it high into the night sky as his teammates jumped around him.
Mbappe single-handedly brought France back into game with a hat-trick
With the final locked 2-2 at the end of normal time, Messi had given Argentina the lead in the 108th when he arrived in the box at the right time to turn in the rebound after French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris saved a shot from Lautaro Martinez.
But Mbappe, who had turned the game on its head in normal time, got a penalty after his shot struck Gonzalo Montiel on the arm. He brought France level again in the 118th, only for goalkeeper Martinez to emerge as the penalty shootout hero, making a save off Kingsley Coman while the impressive Aurelien Tchouameni blazed wide for France.
It was hard on France after the defending champions had rallied from 2-0 down in the last 10 minutes of normal time. Mbappe’s goal to level matters was sublime. He headed a pass from Adrien Rabiot from the right to Marcus Thuram in the middle and once he received the ball from his teammate, he met it with a sensational right-footed volley that brushed the hands of Martinez on its way in. Just a minute or so earlier, Mbappe had breathed hope into France. He set free Randal Kolo Muani and the substitute’s pace was too much for Nicolas Otamendi, who ended up fouling him inside the box. Mbappe’s penalty was superb, going underneath Martinez who’d guessed the right way.
Argentina on top
France had looked dead and buried before that. Messi and his teammates had pummeled them into submission; pinning them down with their relentless pressing from the start.
Messi it was who’d given Argentina the lead at the Lusail Stadium, which had been preparing for his farewell party. Angel Di Maria had been tripped in the box by Ousmane Dembele in the 21st minute and Messi did the rest, planting a perfect penalty as Hugo Lloris dived the wrong way.
Euphoria and delirium overtook the Argentina fans, who had gathered in large numbers here, hoping to witness Messi ending their long wait for the World Cup title. And Argentina seemed to have one hand on the World Cup trophy when they were 2-0 up in the 36th.
Messi had eagerly looked at it when the teams lined up for the national anthems, A French attack had broken down and Messi received a hit ball close to the centre circle. With one touch of his out foot, Messi found Julian Alvarez who just helped it on to Alexis MacAllister. MacAllister ran into the box and a gleeful Di Maria, arriving on the other side, finished off the move to spark more Argentina celebrations.
French coach Didier Deschamps had seen enough and with Argentina dominant, he felt the need to change. Mbappe had been ineffective against Morocco in the semi-final until he was moved to the centre. Deschamps did the same here, replacing Olivier Giroud and Dembele with Thuram and Kolo Muani.
But it was the substitutions he made in the 70th minute _ Kingsley Coman for an ineffective Antoine Griezmann and midfielder Eduardo Camavinga for left-back Theo Hernandez – that changed the complexion of the game. Ultimately, though, it only served to make this an enthralling final. They couldn’t join Italy of 1938 or Brazil of 1962 in defending the World Cup.
The long night was Argentina’s.
Published in Dawn, December 19th, 2022
