Argentina's talisman coped with unrivalled pressure, expectation and weight of a nation's hopes to deliver where no human should
How do the records keep tumbling at 35 years old? The final was his 26th World Cup appearance, overtaking Lothar Matthaus’s 25. The first player to score in every knockout stage of a World Cup, having never scored one before Qatar 2022. In the 23rd minute, he surpassed Paolo Maldini’s 2,216 minutes to have played the most in any World Cup.
The comparisons to a footballing god are so hard to escape: Messi almost single-handedly carrying Argentina throughout this World Cup in the same way Maradona did in 1986. But Messi has also wanted to define himself, as his own player, his own man.He has led in his own way, in his own almost understated style. Not a screamer or shouter, but leading with sublime mastery and control, mesmerising dribbles, crucial goals, unexplainable passing.
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