Hyderabad: Be it Messi's magic, Messi maneuvering football like the school kid who owns it and is not willing to share with anyone like Messi did last night or even 'Messi's Mess' that press came up with in its headlines the last time Argentina lost in the World Cup -- there is an aura to him. More like a hypnotist where you are in a paralyzed state, not able to blink when he is fiddling with the ball.
Not only to the knowers of the sport, but also to people unbeknownst to it.
No one knows what the man himself goes through ahead of the game. But the people, his fans, go through a gamut of emotions. From trying to calm their jangled nerves ahead of Argentina's match to their heart pumping blood at an accelerated speed when he nears the goal post and is close to scoring, and finally boiling when he is arguing with referee over something -- they become the player themselves.
Lavanya Parganiha's, a Biostatistician at a corporate company in Hyderabad's Hi-Tech city, interest piqued when she watched him for the first time this year during Argentina's match against Saudi Arabia.
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Argentina storm through to the #FIFAWorldCup Final 🇦🇷 🔥 #Qatar2022
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 13, 2022 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
">Argentina storm through to the #FIFAWorldCup Final 🇦🇷 🔥 #Qatar2022
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 13, 2022Argentina storm through to the #FIFAWorldCup Final 🇦🇷 🔥 #Qatar2022
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 13, 2022
Read: Football is not Europe's marionette, Qatar shows the way
"A friend of mine encouraged. 'It's art what Messi does on the field,' I remember him telling me. It took me just one match to see for myself what he was talking about. Besides, all the FIFA fever around is infectious. Football is a wonderful game that somehow is not just about sports. I have heard and seen a variety of social issues brought into context during this World Cup. And I guess I still have a lot to explore," she tells ETV Bharat.
There are others who simply followed suit. Did you start watching it due to peer pressure? An emphatic 'NO', replies Tanyaa Sharma, an employee at a Delhi-based NGO, when she was posed with the question over WhatsApp. "Yes, I initially had heard a lot about him and wondered what the fuss was all about. And then I saw him play. I was mesmerized. He maneuvers the ball so tactfully, there are moments when you can't take your eyes off him. Like yesterday's brilliant pass that led to the final goal."
At 35, Messi could hardly be playing any better. He converted a penalty and had a hand in the other two goals by Julian Alvarez, leading Argentina to a 3-0 win over Croatia on Tuesday that set up a meeting with either France or Morocco in Sunday's title match.
It will be Messi's second World Cup final — Argentina lost the other one to Germany in 2014 — in what might be his last appearance at the tournament. It could yet be the perfect way to go out for a player widely regarded as one of the game’s best players, if not the best. Messi is thrilling his legion of fans along the way, with his swivel and driving run to set up the third goal for Alvarez in the 69th minute epitomizing his confidence and swagger. He is embracing the responsibility of leading Argentina to its third World Cup title, scoring in five of his six games in Qatar.
For Arpita Tewari, sports have never been her forte. "I have always been into music, honestly. Never really had time for watching sports, not my cup of tea." Come 2022 World Cup, her idea of sports being perceived as a show of physicality and crude power completely changed when her friend Harshita showed her on YouTube with a search typed 'Messi's best goals'. "It took my breath away. The guy is rhythmic and is so humble. I am totally supporting Argentina in the finals just for Messi. And yes, he is 'musical' to watch."
3-year-old Aisha from Kreeri area of North Kashmir's Baramullah district starts hopping on the bed, making her parents worry more about the mattress than the child for a milli second. "She dances around in circles when she sees Messi play," her mother tells us.
And Aisha would surely like to repeat what she does as the Argentine's journey comes full circle in the FIFA World Cup final with fans waiting to be captivated by him again, perhaps for the last time.
