HOW OFTEN BEFORE this tournament started did you hear or read about how people measure their lives in World Cups?
Accepted wisdom – including from this parish – was that the competition slowly loses its allure as you get older.
The magic fades, the sense of wonder and possibility diminishes.
You grow old and weary and maybe even a little bit resentful. The World Cup of your childhood is the one that colours your view of the game, providing a black and white value system for how you believe things should be.
It’s the greatest influence on your understanding and perception of what greatness is, and what it looks like.
Lionel Messi has changed that.
What he has done, thanks in no small part to the influence of Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni, of course, is to create a convergence of thought between young and old.
What you understood to be the only truth 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago is no longer the case. Today we live in a reality forged by an Argentine that all of us can share in. This era of Messi is the greatest of all.
More than that, Messi has found another way to make us question those assumptions of the past.
You can all feel young again by watching him, revelling in his ability to defy his body’s own physical limitations with an intelligence, talent and competitive spirit that work in a perfect, deadly harmony.
He is every hero of your childhood and no matter what age you are now you can feel young and inspired again.
The statistics are a helpful tool for any argument. The most World Cup goals (21), assists (12), consecutive games scored (nine), consecutive goal contributions (11) and only the second player in history after Cafu who will play in three final games.
Ahead of Sunday’s showpiece with Spain in New Jersey, Messi now has the opportunity to lead his country to back-to-back World Cups.
Rewind to the 2010 edition when Diego Maradona was Argentina manager and Germany eliminated them 4-0; it felt like the narrative of his career was written in stone.
He was entering his peak years with Barcelona, winning the Ballon d’Or the year before and then in consecutive seasons between 2011-13.
Losing the 2014 World Cup final to Germany in Brazil was the first hint of a possible arc in his story. When he announced his international retirement after losing the 2016 Copa America to Chile, some derided the decision as being taken in a fit of pique.
Others questioned whether it was an example of him not being a spiritual leader for a country in the same way that Maradona was viewed.
Ten years on, everything we thought we knew has proven to be an illusion of the norms that has been established throughout decades before.
Is he perfect? No, of course not; his penalty miss against Egypt earlier in the knockout stages shows his fallibility.
But look at what happened next: he was the inspiration for a thrilling comeback and his tearful celebrations only added to that sense of vulnerability.
He is nearing the end, that cannot be denied. We just don’t know how it will look.
This World Cup has felt like him saying goodbye. He has spoken to media along the gauntlet of the mixed zone after every game, stopping multiple times on some occasions.
“This team never stops trying. We went out there playing football and with real determination,” he said during one of at least three huddles after beating England.
“We pinned them back in their own half and showed we could win it in normal time, without going to extra time. No Argentine wanted to lose this match. The way this entire World Cup has unfolded has been incredible, especially considering the significance of this semi-final against England.
“No one wanted to lose, setting aside any other context, but that’s how it is.”
That’s how it is because that is what Messi made it be.
As he eventually departed the Atlanta Stadium on Wednesday, two Fifa volunteers waved excitedly at him and wished him well for the future. They thanked him for what he had done on the pitch and hurriedly tried to capture some photos and videos of him walking by.
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They weren’t alone. Nearly every other journalist there was doing the same. However, when someone from the stadium operations’ team saw the volunteers dare to try and capture this moment, they were made to delete all images from their phone.
The employee stood over the pair to make sure all evidence was removed.
“Come on, it’s not worth the trouble, just do it,” one of the volunteers implored their friend as the stadium worker eventually left satisfied with his interference.
It was just afterwards that the other volunteer turned to their pal and laughed by showing that one photo had been saved in a small act of defiance.
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Lionel Messi keeps the magic of youth and possibility alive for all of us
HOW OFTEN BEFORE this tournament started did you hear or read about how people measure their lives in World Cups?
Accepted wisdom – including from this parish – was that the competition slowly loses its allure as you get older.
The magic fades, the sense of wonder and possibility diminishes.
You grow old and weary and maybe even a little bit resentful. The World Cup of your childhood is the one that colours your view of the game, providing a black and white value system for how you believe things should be.
It’s the greatest influence on your understanding and perception of what greatness is, and what it looks like.
Lionel Messi has changed that.
What he has done, thanks in no small part to the influence of Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni, of course, is to create a convergence of thought between young and old.
What you understood to be the only truth 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago is no longer the case. Today we live in a reality forged by an Argentine that all of us can share in. This era of Messi is the greatest of all.
As laid out in the aftermath of Wednesday’s 2-1 win over England, there is no longer a debate about who the best player of our lifetimes is.
More than that, Messi has found another way to make us question those assumptions of the past.
You can all feel young again by watching him, revelling in his ability to defy his body’s own physical limitations with an intelligence, talent and competitive spirit that work in a perfect, deadly harmony.
He is every hero of your childhood and no matter what age you are now you can feel young and inspired again.
The statistics are a helpful tool for any argument. The most World Cup goals (21), assists (12), consecutive games scored (nine), consecutive goal contributions (11) and only the second player in history after Cafu who will play in three final games.
Ahead of Sunday’s showpiece with Spain in New Jersey, Messi now has the opportunity to lead his country to back-to-back World Cups.
Rewind to the 2010 edition when Diego Maradona was Argentina manager and Germany eliminated them 4-0; it felt like the narrative of his career was written in stone.
He was entering his peak years with Barcelona, winning the Ballon d’Or the year before and then in consecutive seasons between 2011-13.
Losing the 2014 World Cup final to Germany in Brazil was the first hint of a possible arc in his story. When he announced his international retirement after losing the 2016 Copa America to Chile, some derided the decision as being taken in a fit of pique.
Others questioned whether it was an example of him not being a spiritual leader for a country in the same way that Maradona was viewed.
Ten years on, everything we thought we knew has proven to be an illusion of the norms that has been established throughout decades before.
Is he perfect? No, of course not; his penalty miss against Egypt earlier in the knockout stages shows his fallibility.
But look at what happened next: he was the inspiration for a thrilling comeback and his tearful celebrations only added to that sense of vulnerability.
He is nearing the end, that cannot be denied. We just don’t know how it will look.
This World Cup has felt like him saying goodbye. He has spoken to media along the gauntlet of the mixed zone after every game, stopping multiple times on some occasions.
“This team never stops trying. We went out there playing football and with real determination,” he said during one of at least three huddles after beating England.
“We pinned them back in their own half and showed we could win it in normal time, without going to extra time. No Argentine wanted to lose this match. The way this entire World Cup has unfolded has been incredible, especially considering the significance of this semi-final against England.
“No one wanted to lose, setting aside any other context, but that’s how it is.”
That’s how it is because that is what Messi made it be.
As he eventually departed the Atlanta Stadium on Wednesday, two Fifa volunteers waved excitedly at him and wished him well for the future. They thanked him for what he had done on the pitch and hurriedly tried to capture some photos and videos of him walking by.
They weren’t alone. Nearly every other journalist there was doing the same. However, when someone from the stadium operations’ team saw the volunteers dare to try and capture this moment, they were made to delete all images from their phone.
The employee stood over the pair to make sure all evidence was removed.
“Come on, it’s not worth the trouble, just do it,” one of the volunteers implored their friend as the stadium worker eventually left satisfied with his interference.
It was just afterwards that the other volunteer turned to their pal and laughed by showing that one photo had been saved in a small act of defiance.
“It’s Messi, it is worth it.”
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