Game’s greatest player will not see his legacy sullied by defeat to Spain but his team’s display destroyed the game Playing on the grandest stage in sport for the last time, Lionel Messi seemed almost certain to provide one last memorable moment in this World Cup final. Yet as the sun ducked behind the west stand of New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday, it became clearer and clearer that Argentina had lost the magic they had carried through this tournament. And as Spain gradually wrested control, one was left to confront reality: Messi, and Argentina, had finally run out of time, having long since given in to their worst instincts in a 1-0 defeat . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/hAjXnVR via IFTTT
Coach tells of first encounter when Messi was 16
‘I took man-marker off and Messi scored four’
Luis de la Fuente says he will not man-mark Lionel Messi in the World Cup final, even though the Argentina captain has scored eight times and provided four assists and the Spain coach’s own experience suggests it might not be a bad idea.
In the buildup to Sunday’s final in New Jersey, De la Fuente told the story of the first time he encountered Messi, 22 years ago, when the Argentinian was a 16-year-old coming through at Barcelona, he was the youth-team coach at Sevilla and the under-19 cup draw brought them together in the last 16 in May 2004 at the Miniestadi.
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