Winning the World Cup is Very Difficult, Luck Was on Our Side: Messi

Argentina will be celebrating the third anniversary of their third World Cup victory in about two weeks. Ahead of this, Lionel Messi has spoken about that World Cup. According to the Argentine superstar, they also had luck on their side during the tournament.

In the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Messi’s Argentina lost their very first match against Saudi Arabia. After that, they made a brilliant comeback to reach the quarter-finals. There, they faced a difficult test against the Netherlands.

In that match, Argentina took a two-goal lead but later conceded two goals. The game went to a tiebreaker. It was through Emiliano Martínez’s heroism that the Albiceleste secured their ticket to the semi-finals, a moment that reminds Messi of luck.

In an interview given to ESPN, Messi revisited the tournament from nearly three years ago. There, he stated that winning the World Cup is not easy at all.

“Winning the World Cup is very difficult. Any team can be tough for you and ring your farewell bell. The ball might hit the post and go out, or it might go in. Or you could even lose on penalties.”

In the final match against France, Argentina again took a two-goal lead in the first half. But Kylian Mbappé brought France level with two goals in the second half. Argentina took the lead again in extra time. However, Mbappé completed a hat-trick, forcing the game into a tiebreaker.

Just like the quarter-finals, Emiliano Martínez again proved to be the difference-maker in the penalty shoot-out of the title decider. According to Messi, they managed to achieve the difficult task of winning the World Cup by succeeding in that game of chance.

Khaborwala/SS