Read 7 minutesAtlantaUpdated: 16 July 2026 05:11 AM IST
Near the center circle, Lionel Messi knelt, prayed and gazed poignantly at the sky through the arena’s translucent roof. Tears flowed from his eyes, tears of indescribable joy, his head bowed and he repeatedly punched the air like a judoka’s underarm strike. Twenty years of scaling greatness, he experienced the elusive nirvana of the game, achieved sainthood and experienced every emotion imaginable, dealt with heartbreak and disillusionment and won every trophy football could offer him.
Still, he was a boy again, crying and living for an evening that he would hold close to his heart. With a light but satisfied smile, he turned to the fans, where his teammates were already celebrating, with discordant beats drumming in the background. Some of them unfurled a large white flag with the message—”Las Malvinas Son Argentinas” (“The Malvinas are Argentina”). His teammates threw Messi in the air and carried him on their shoulders, which is now a ritual.
As happened | Argentina staged a late comeback to beat England to reach their second consecutive World Cup final
Argentina’s Lionel Messi celebrates as England’s Marcus Rashford looks on after the FIFA World Cup semi-final in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jacob Kuferman)
No matter how the managers shook off the echoes of history, the match was heard. They danced and jumped, shirtless, until Argentina’s media engagement ended and their buses left. The crowd lingered, just to soak in the entire euphoric atmosphere of a grand feat. Atlanta will feel like the Aztecs. Perhaps, it will be for the experiences and emotions, which life after the game cannot provide, that Messi continues to play.
Back in the tunnel, he wrapped his arms around England captain Harry Kane, stopped to chat with John Stones and comforted Thomas Tuchel. He can relate to England’s pain, he has felt the same. It was a poignant frame that captured the game’s timeless emotion that was rarely evoked in the first half. On one side of the field the Argentines and their supporters were bringing down the roof; Not far from it, England’s players were huddled on the floor, cursing cruel fate, wondering how history would judge them, or social media tearing them apart, wondering where it all went wrong for them. England couldn’t beat Maradona; He will not be his successor, Messi. Kane said he was upset, but the trauma can last forever. Another game in heartbreak alley.
Argentina’s Lionel Messi (10) and England’s Harry Kane embrace after the World Cup semifinal soccer match between England and Argentina, Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Eric S. Lesser)
However, it could all be different. With just five minutes to go before the agonizing end to Messi’s career, the meaningful part of it, he and his tireless men pulled off another miraculous escape, scoring two goals in just 360 seconds to seal their place in the final. It will be sweeter than the theft of Egypt; The raucous crowd, the layers of history that mark the two nations, the anger and outrage spilling out onto the field, the nerves and tension, the cup slipping from their hands, the hollowness of being former champions.
But when adversity stares them in the eye, Argentina inevitably finds a thread of hope. Perhaps, his ignition of them; They have to be slapped on the face to wake them up. It was the exact moment that took the game from a wrestling match to a football match, a referee with a less temperament would have flicked the cards in his breast pocket more often. Players pushed and pulled, tackles flew as often as invectives. John Stones’ header from Declan Rice was the first convincing shot attempt. That came 33 minutes into the game. Just before half-time, Enzo Fernandez unzipped a curler that he couldn’t put down and onto Jordan Pickford. An apt portrait of the game was 7-12 in favor of Argentina, the number of fouls committed by both teams.
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Players argue during the World Cup semifinal soccer match between England and Argentina, Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Eric S. Lesser)
When everything is pushed into a corner, when the paths of return are blocked, when everything is almost lost, when they throw carefully conceived strategic letters to the wind, avoid structure and design and only unlock chaos. A rhythmic, methodical chaos, like the chorus of their song Muchachos. The refined Messi was never a man of chaos at La Masia. Now, he is an agent of chaos. He defined football in his image; Now he’s redefining it.
The second Argentina conceded turned it into a different team after winger Anthony Gordon made a shocking defensive error; They felt empowered. Before Enzo Fernandez’s strike, a curling pearler deflected off Jordan Pickford, was shot straight by Alexis McAllister (he would again slam the post), prompting Nico Gonzalez to make a low diving save from Pickford. Every fruitless effort did not faze him. Messi urged the audience to raise their voices and keep believing. He lifted his voice through a shockingly fleeting path. Argentina found their precision and purpose.
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford (1) fails to stop a shot by Argentina’s Enzo Fernandez (24) as he scores his team’s first goal during the World Cup semi-final soccer match between England and Argentina, Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
England packed the box in anticipation of a wickedly spinning corner when Argentina got a corner. It didn’t happen. Messi takes a corner shot, takes it and recycles it to Fernandes, wide. He took a touch and wrapped his legs around it. The ball went past Pickford, who made a heroic conversion. There was a noticeable change in mood. You could hear England’s confidence cracking with their own destructiveness and defensive tactics. Argentina cannot be stopped now. They took possession fiercely; They fearlessly attacked England’s box, breaking their cohesion and destroying their confidence.
A dagger came through the heart. Again from Messi’s feet. He swung a devastating arcing cross at Nico O’Reilly. Lautaro Martinez was waiting. He strained every vein in his neck to meet the ball and get past Pickford. This was the game; Argentina knew; England knew it too. England couldn’t beat Maradona; They couldn’t even beat Messi. And Messi has one more game to experience the full spectrum of emotions he lives through. Perhaps the greatest game of his career; Or the most brutal.