The dream final: Argentina vs Spain
New York.— Lionel Messi is once again at the center of a World Cup final. The Argentine star, 39, has scored eight goals and four assists in this tournament to lead his team to a new duel for the title. The rival: Spain, the team that has not lost since the beginning of 2024 and has gone 37 games undefeated.
Scaloni, Argentina coach, defined him bluntly: “He is pure history.” “Having reached a final at the moment he is in, at 39 years old, is incredible,” he added. De la Fuente, his Spanish colleague and former Scaloni teacher, also praised the captain: “At his age, he is having a spectacular World Cup.”
Rodri, captain of Spain, recognized Messi’s greatness: “For me he is the best of all time.” But he warned: “Argentina is much more than Messi, they have shown that they are a very complete team.”
Argentina seeks to become the first team to retain the title since Brazil in 1962. It arrives after winning the Copa América 2021 and 2024, and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. A team that has been lethal in the final moments: nine of its eleven goals from the round of 16 came in the last 15 minutes, injury time or overtime.
Spain, for its part, wants to confirm itself as the model team of current football. They come from beating France 2-0 in the semifinals and have only conceded one goal in seven games. “We have to win by details, be faithful to our idea,” said De la Fuente.
The game will be played on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, with about 80,000 spectators. It is the first final between Spanish-speaking teams since 1930. There is also the generational element: Messi and the 17-year-old Spanish star, photographed together almost two decades ago. “That photo is crazy,” Messi commented about the meeting.
Exactly a decade ago, Messi cried in the tunnels of the same stadium after losing another final with Argentina. Today, he is one step away from his fourth major title with the national team.
