- World Cup in Qatar | Special: Messi’s milestone night
- 2022-12-05 09:40:18.0 Source: Xinhua Net Sports
Authors: Yue Ranran, Dong Yixing, Zhang Yifei
On the 3rd, the outer wall of the Ahmed Ben Ali stadium was illuminated with the blue and white lights of the Argentine team, and Messi’s 1000th career match ended here perfectly.
Argentina defeated Australia 2:1 to advance to the quarterfinals of the World Cup in Qatar. Messi wrote a footnote for his 1,000th game with “6 shots, 2 shots on goal, 1 goal and 88% pass rate.”
Before the match, Messi entered the dressing room in his blue shirt, his face beaming, his number 10 shirt hanging in the middle.
More than 40,000 spectators came to the stadium that evening, most of them Argentinian fans, and all of them came to witness Messi’s big night. The media are mainly concerned with two questions: Can Messi score in the round of 16 of the World Cup? Will his thousandth game come as a surprise?
All the shots were aimed at Messi coming out of the players’ tunnel and everyone was expecting a miracle.
After the opening, Messi rotated in midfield, from time to time being “groomed” by the opponent. In the 32nd minute, Besic near the touchline made a mistake under Messi’s pressure, pulled Messi’s shirt hard, and there was little friction between the two teams. Soon Messi gave the most powerful “counter-attack” with a goal: he cut inside the penalty area and fired a “stick cut” from the space between the three defenders.
The familiar position of the goal, the familiar gesture of celebration, the knockout stage of the World Cup finally “opened up” and Messi’s goal got the night off to a good start.
On December 3, Argentine player Messi celebrated a goal in the game. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Meng Dingbo
Subsequently, the “Plum Ball King” was more and more marked, and teammates also extended a helping hand one after another. In the 57th minute, DePaul intercepted the ball at the feet of the Australian goalkeeper and helped Alvarez make it through the night. Argentina led 2:0.
After a period of time, Messi took over the game – his dribbling, dribbling and long shots were dazzling and created many excellent chances, but it was a shame that none of them were converted into goals.
On December 3, Argentine player Messi (third from right) made a breakthrough in the game. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Cao Can
If the script is too fluid, it will also make Messi’s goal night a bit boring. Soon after teammates often missed opportunities, the spoiler appeared.
In the 77th minute the Australian Goodwin shot hard from outside the area, the ball hit Enzo Fernandez and refracted into the net.
The Argentine panicked and Martinez started to ‘block the hole’, confiscated Cool’s close shot at the last moment and the Australian team failed to take the opportunity to equalise.
“He didn’t kill the game first, he almost made us pay the price.” After the match, Messi had lingering fears.
When the final whistle blew, Messi saluted and punched the stands, the one he wanted to thank the most were the fans. “I know how difficult it is for fans to come to the stadium to watch the match. Fans from all over Argentina want to come here. The passion, the energy, the joy of everyone makes everything incredible.”
On December 3, Argentine player Messi greeted the crowd after the match. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Ga
On the night of the 1,000-game milestone, Messi’s World Cup goals reached 9, surpassing his predecessor Maradona.
Just as the World Cup in Qatar just opened, some Argentine fans put up a portrait of Maradona in the stands to commemorate the second anniversary of his death. Now, even the 35-year-old Messi has reached the end of his career, he knows clearly that his expectations of him are also those of Argentina.
