iPhone | iPad
Android
Huawei
The three-match series, the first bilateral between the neighbours, will be played in Sharjah on March 24, 26 and 27
KT APPDOWNLOAD
Lionel Messi: The world at his feet
Even at 35, an age when a player is considered to be ‘old’, the Argentinian star is showing no limitations in the sport
AP
If you ever wanted confirmation of the true meaning of the word greatness look no further than Lionel Messi.
The little man from Rosario, in the central Argentine province of Santa Fe, is greatness personified.
To the uninitiated, football may appear to be a rather simple game to master. After all, you only have to kick an inflated leather ball around a rectangular-shaped ground before you attempt to place it between two poles holding a fish net.
However, anyone who has watched the Fifa World Cup in Qatar will have understood by now that football is a far more technical and sophisticated game than meets the eyes, Like most sports, it’s a game that requires exceptional mental and physical skills and abilities, to master.
Not everybody who plays the planet’s most watched sport which boasts over 3.5 billion fans, has been able to have achieved complete mastery of their craft.
Many have attempted to, but very few have succeeded – Pele, Diego Maradona, Christiano Ronaldo, Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, Zinadine Zidane, Ferenc Puskas, and George Best being among an elite group who have come close to footballing perfection.
But that list will not be complete without the mention of Messi. Even at 35, an age when a player is usually considered to be ‘old’, Messi is showing no limitations in the sport that has been his life-blood for close to two decades.
The Messi magic that we were fortunate and blessed to witness on Tuesday night in Qatar when he almost single-handedly tore Croatia to pieces, was incomprehensible.
Here was a man, that many non-believers had written off before the start of football’s quadrennial showpiece, playing at the height of his powers. A height that even some of the game’s greatest players have not quite scaled.
There was so much to like and admire about the persona that Messi, who scored once and had a magical hand in two others, has brought to football’s biggest stage.
He is at his brilliant best - divine, flawless, bold as brass, able-bodied, insightful, and ruthless. All of this combines with a new-found aggressiveness that adds an edge to his character.
After the end of the Maradona era, Argentina were desperate for a successor and they could not have hoped for a greater figure than Messi.
The artistry that he put on display against Croatia, one of the most patient and controlled teams in Europe that boasts the strongest midfield in world football, made their legends like Luka Modric, Marcelo Brozovic, and Mateo Kovacic, look ordinary.
Let us forget the astonishing records that he has set over the years for the moment and ponder on the 35-year-old enchanter. It’s one thing to reach the pinnacle of a sport, but it is quite something else to stay that.
And that in essence is what Messi has been able to accomplish and is still enthralling us, match after match.
Even television cameramen are spellbound by the magician of Santa Fe as we saw on Tuesday night when almost every emotion, every fist-pump, every knowing smile was captured on camera and shown for all the world to see.
The beard, which was once known to symbolize maturity and knowledge, is now a mark of male dominance, Messi's dominance.
ALSO READ:
Messi is not yet finished, by no stretch of the imagination. On Sunday he will hope to write his name on football’s greatest prize, the Jules Rimet Trophy, and give Argentina a fourth success in the showpiece.
It’s another shot at glory and another piece of silverware for a man whose legs and mind are showing no signs of slowing down.
Beyond the superlatives, Messi deserves total respect for what he has given a football as he stands on the cusp of greatness.
More news from Sports
It is Perez's second career pole and second in Saudi Arabia, while Verstappen will start from 15th
Qalandars had also defeated Sultans in last year's final
Fresh from his five-goal salvo against RB Leipzig in midweek, the Norwegian forward proved insatiable again to demolish the Championship leaders at The Etihad Stadium
Leeds boosted its survival hopes with a 4-2 win at Wolves
He is evidently still finding his feet in ODIs and has gone without a fifty in all five ODIs this year
Barca has been charged with corruption by Spanish prosecutors for payments between 2001 and 2018 to the company of former refereeing chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, totalling around $7.8 million
The U.S. currently bars unvaccinated foreigners from entry into the country, a policy that is expected to be lifted when the government ends its Covid-19 emergency declarations on May 11