The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ is now just 67 days away.
As we count down to the start of the global showpiece in Qatar on 20 November, FIFA+ is showcasing 100 of the greatest moments in FIFA World Cup history.
Lionel Messi’s status as one of the game’s truly great players has never been in doubt. What has been questioned, particularly around Argentina’s national team, is whether he is also a great captain.
Diego Maradona famously said that Messi “doesn’t have the personality to be a leader”, and he was not alone in making this assertion. But long before he led La Albiceleste to glory in the Copa America, this quiet and reserved superstar provided – in both words and actions – the perfect example of leadership at Russia 2018.
Argentina were, at the time, in deep trouble. After toiling to a 1-1 draw with Iceland in their opening match and slumping to a 3-0 defeat to Croatia in their second, Messi and his team-mates knew that only victory over Nigeria would sustain their FIFA World Cup™ ambitions.
The Albiceleste skipper, who had missed a penalty against Iceland, began by leading in the way he is most comfortable: by example. His 14th-minute opener was a goal of real beauty, made up of an intelligent run and three touches, each more exquisite than the last.
But then, with their lead narrow and the stakes high, there came a stirring and unfamiliar captain’s address in the tunnel at half-time.
“Messi came up to us and told us to calm down and not be stressed,” Marcos Rojo, the eventual match-winner, later revealed. “We felt nervous and that message helped us a lot. It gave me personally a huge confidence boost.”
Even as under-pressure Argentina continued to make life difficult for themselves, conceding a second-half equaliser, it was Messi who drove his team-mates forward.
“Messi told everyone that it was either life or death,” said Rojo. “It could’ve gone badly, we could’ve conceded, but Leo was stubborn.
“He told me to run forward. Even [Javier] Mascherano. He told everyone to attack no matter what. He truly read the game and risks.”
“Messi is our captain,” added the defender. “And he’s the best captain in the world.”
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