Lionel Messi is going to a third World Cup final. Let that settle for a second. While England are left to process another tournament exit at the hands of Argentina, Messi — at this stage of his career, in 2026 — just turned in the kind of performance that makes the argument for him feel almost unfair to have.
Messi operated on the right wing and, according to BBC Sport, delivered a masterclass — the kind of display that pulls defenders out of shape just by existing in their eyeline. Argentina were clinical, composed, and built around a player who, by any reasonable logic, should no longer be doing this at this level. He was. He did.
The tactical picture was familiar to anyone who has watched Argentina under this setup: Messi drifting inside from the right, drawing pressure, creating pockets. England had no clean answer. You rarely do when the question is Messi in a knockout game with something on the line.
Three World Cup finals. Three. No outfield player in the history of the men's game has reached that number. The first, in 2014, ended in extra-time heartbreak against Germany. The second, in 2022, ended with the trophy — and one of the most extraordinary finals ever played. Now a third, in 2026, at an age when most players have long since retired or drifted into comfortable irrelevance.
England fans will feel this one. The fixture carries its own weight — the 1986 quarter-final, the 1998 round of 16, the 2022 quarter-final — and now another chapter. England's players gave everything. It just wasn't enough, and it wasn't enough largely because of one man.
For England, the questions will come quickly. They reached the semi-final of a World Cup on home soil — or at least on the North American continent — and pushed Argentina hard. But Messi at his best in a World Cup knockout game is a different kind of problem, and England, like so many before them, couldn't solve it.
The broader England project continues. The players are young enough, the talent is real. But this one will sting, and it will sting for a while.
England didn't lose to Argentina. They lost to Messi. There's a difference, and somehow that makes it worse.
Lionel Messi is going to a third World Cup final. Let that settle for a second. While England are left to process another tournament exit at the hands of Argentina, Messi — at this stage of his career, in 2026
Lähteet
BBC Sport — Football
Flagsiden jutut ovat omaperäisiä, monista lähteistä syntetisoituja kirjoituksia. Mainitsemme jokaisen median, joka ruokki juttua.
Yön otteluiden poiminta, mitä siirtoikkunassa tapahtuu, ja yksi kolumni, josta toimituksen pöytä väitteli. Ei mainoksia. Ei vinkkejä. Ei operaattoreita.
Yksi klikkaus poistaa tilauksesta. Emme jaa sähköpostiosoitteita.
“Stays on World Cup — different angle, same beat.”
MAAJOUKKUEETKhi Anh dẫn trước và đồng hồ đã chạm phút 85, tất cả mọi người đều nghĩ câu chuyện đã được định sẵn. Rồi Lionel Messi quyết định viết lại nó — hai lần, trong năm phút.
“Stays on World Cup — different angle, same beat.”
MAAJOUKKUEETKhi Anh dẫn trước và đồng hồ đã chạm phút 85, tất cả mọi người đều nghĩ câu chuyện đã được định sẵn. Rồi Lionel Messi quyết định viết lại nó — hai lần, trong năm phút.
