​[카타르 월드컵] Argentina, the beginning and the end

Argentine nationals cheering with players of the Argentina national football team during the World Cup victory parade. [사진=연합뉴스]

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar has ended. Argentina lifted the World Cup for the third time in 36 years. The Argentine people welcomed the players from Qatar to Argentina.

Messi’s uniforms and flags fluttered all over the country. People’s mouths were cheering. From Buenos Aires, the capital, to Ushuaia, the southernmost point.

The World Cup ended with a happy ending for Messi, who danced the ‘last dance’ with Argentina.

In this World Cup, Argentina decorated the beginning and the end.

It didn’t start well. On November 22, at 7:00 pm (Korean time), the Group C match was held at Lusail Stadium in Qatar. Argentina’s opponent is Saudi Arabia.

Lionel Messi scored from a penalty kick in the 10th minute. Until then, people all over the world who had been watching the game nodded as if it were natural. The first half ended 1-0. In the second half, the nodded head stopped and changed to surprise. In the 3rd minute of the second half, Saleh Al Sehri scored an equalizer, and in the 8th minute of the second half, Salem Al Dausari scored a reverse goal. The score quickly became 1-2.

Argentina did their best to turn the score around. The referee repeatedly called for offside. As a result, Saudi Arabia defeated Argentina. People called it ‘the miracle of Lusail’.

This defeat was a miracle drug for Argentina. After that, they won the two matches (against Mexico and Poland). They advanced to the tournament as 1st place in Group C of the group stage. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia was eliminated in 4th place.

Lionel Messi (left) and the late Diego Maradona having a conversation. [사진=연합뉴스]

On November 25, during the group stage, soccer legends gathered in Doha, Qatar.

It is to commemorate Diego Maradona, who died of a heart attack at the age of 60 on November 25, 2020.

A statue of Maradona wearing an Argentine uniform was erected and a mural was painted. Maradona had the World Cup in his hands. Achieved in 1986, it is the second World Cup in Argentina’s history.

People who watched Maradona’s memorial event naturally thought of Messi. Messi has never had a World Cup in his career history. As if conscious of such Messi, he posted a picture of Maradona on his social network service (SNS). It is in the sense of remembrance and resolution.

Argentina beat Australia 2-1 in the round of 16 to advance to the quarterfinals. As Messi danced, Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Croatia’s Luka Modric also joined.

The match against the Netherlands was close to a bloody battle. Messi, who was called the god of soccer, was also angry. Ronaldo stopped dancing in the quarterfinals. She shed tears of sorrow from the ground to the locker room.

In the semifinals, Messi himself stopped Modric from dancing. The long-awaited final.

The opponent is France, where Kylian Mbappe is holding out. Soccer fans around the world cheered for Messi’s World Cup victory. A small number of French nationals who lifted the World Cup four years ago secretly supported Messi.

Mbappe did not give up easily. In a situation where they were down 2-0, they dragged it to 2-2 overtime. Extra time 3-3. France’s last shot was blocked by Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.

It led to a penalty shootout. Martinez broke France. The penalty shootout resulted in Argentina winning the match 4-2. When the title was confirmed, Messi spread his arms and knelt on the spot. His colleagues hugged him like that.

Lionel Messi (center) wearing a bar seat. [사진=로이터·연합뉴스]

On the podium, Messi wore a vixit (black cloak), a symbol of nobility. He quietly walked to the center and held the World Cup high in the sky.

Messi remains one of the greatest players in football history.

Argentina’s central bank is considering Messi as a model for 1,000 pesos (about 23,000 won) to commemorate World Cup victory.

Adidas, Messi’s sponsor, posted a photo of Messi with a goat on social media in 2018.

The goat stands for ‘GOAT’ (Greatest Of All Time). The comments on the post were not good. It is because of the point that there is no World Cup.

Adidas waited 4 years. As soon as Messi won the trophy, he posted a picture of a goat on social media. A lonely goat says:

“Told you so.”

[사진=아디다스 트위터]


©’Global Economy Newspaper in 5 languages’ Ajou Economy. Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.