Is the football World Cup entirely staged? Has FIFA decided in advance to put the trophy in Lionel Messi’s hands? From alleged refereeing bias to the use of VAR, there has been no shortage of controversy. As the World Cup has progressed, the list of such complaints about Argentina has grown longer. But after beating England to reach a second successive World Cup final, Argentina captain Lionel Messi cleared away all the critics’ insinuations.
Answering every complaint with his performance on the pitch, Messi made it plain that since the 2022 World Cup they have been the world’s best team in the on-field battle, and that this is now conclusively proven.
Venting his frustration at critics, Messi said: “These things hurt a lot. For the last four years we have been the world’s best team, whether anyone likes it or not. In two successive World Cups we have shown that we did not win by luck. No one gave us extra advantages. Reaching the final of two World Cups in a row is not easy. This team has shown it can be done.”
In this World Cup, Argentina have pulled matches out of one difficult situation after another. Yet the criticism has not stopped. Messi feels that had they lost to England, these detractors would have had a chance to talk even more foolishly. “If we had lost to England, many would have spoken foolishly. We didn’t give them that chance,” he said. “We know how well we play, so it doesn’t matter who says what. But I think people should think before they speak. You shouldn’t say something you’ll later regret.”
The historic significance of an Argentina-England clash on the World Cup stage is not lost on Messi, so the joy of beating England is a little greater than any other win. “Even though this is just another World Cup match, it’s different from the rest,” Messi said. “The supporters wanted this win, because there is no joy like beating England to reach a World Cup final. We were able to give the supporters that.”
Messi added that there was no way they could have lost this match; for Argentines, such a defeat would have been impossible to digest. “No one in Argentina wanted to lose this match. Everyone knows we couldn’t have digested this defeat. So perhaps the joy is a little greater. I know all of Argentina is jumping for joy now,” he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report