Peter Drury is right. Messi will be sainted. And why not? Luis Lionel Andres Messi, to the millions of his fans around the world, is the greatest of all time (GOAT). As he lifts the ultimate prize in football, his case to be the GOAT becomes the strongest it ever has been. Undoubtedly one of the greatest to ever play the beautiful game, the FIFA World Cup trophy had eluded him for his whole career of over 20 years. Not anymore. What a swansong! Like the British sports commentator said after Montiel scored the match-winner for Argentina, Messi has climbed into a galaxy of his own. Generations after generations of football fans will talk about Messi.
Diego Maradona predicted long ago that Messi’s potential is limitless and that he has got everything it takes to become Argentina’s greatest player. Many great players have gone before Messi, and many more will follow.
There is no objective metric to compare the “greatness” of players spanning across generations and situations – the best that the fans can do is respect the footballing context. As time passes by, nostalgia attaches mythical status to greats like Messi – and Maradona, and Pele, and Cruyff, and Zidane, and Ronaldo, and the other Ronaldo, and the list goes on. Their legends will only grow over time. And there are countless other football greats who ended without lifting the World Cup. But right now, it is about Messi and Argentina. However, pedestalizing Messi and Argentina should not diminish France, and Mbappé. Respect.
Messi was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency (GHD), aged just 11. Legend has it that (since he is now a legend) his local club, River Plate was interested in signing Messi but didn’t want to pay for his medical treatment. As fate would have it, Messi’s family through their relatives in Catalonia, Spain arranged a trial with Barcelona in September 2000. The coach was impressed and offered Messi a contract which included paying for Messi’s treatment in Spain. Legend also has it that the contract was written on a paper napkin! Messi moved to Barcelona with his father and became part of the prestigious FC Barcelona youth academy. It is said that the Royal Spanish Football Federation pursued Messi to join the Spanish Football Team. However, Messi declined. The rest, as they say, is history. For now, Messi is a world champion and football is complete.
FIFA World Cup 2022 is over but we have seen how football unites the world. Just as football fans in Mokokchung are passionate about the game, it is the same everywhere. Hopes may have been crushed and hearts broken, but dreams have also come true and history has been scripted. That is the beauty of the game. Before signing off, this column would like to pose a few questions. We have seen how passionate Mokokchung is about football. So let us ask ourselves – can we produce professional football players from Mokokchung? Assuming that there is no dearth of talent, what must we do to open wide the doors of opportunity? And who will take the initiative? Here’s to the one who will turn Mokokchung’s passion into success.