‘Messi is lucky that he is still in this tournament’

Henry Winter’s World Cup Diary, Day 25

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Kansas City
Every minute that Lionel Messi plays is a must see. Each passing day is one closer to the young genius’ retirement. A group of us gathered in the TV lobby of a mid-morning hotel in the Midwest to watch and admire Messi in Argentina’s tumultuous game against Egypt. Some hotel guests stopped by to check the extent of Messi’s involvement, which for a long time appeared to be intended for the lounge. He is 39 years old, and the World Cup team has been saying goodbye to big names like Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, and Luka Modric, 40. Messi is planning an epic battle with Father Time. But he is still lucky to be in this tournament.

The way out of Egypt is growing. Their coach Hossam Hassan said the officials favored Argentina in a series of controversial decisions in their 3-2 victory. “Maybe they wanted Messi to continue running,” said Hassan. That is debatable, of course, and Messi is not to blame.

What is clear is that the officials seem to change their emphasis when they are beaten. Advantage is promoted in the group stage. The foul was admittedly worse than Marwan Attia’s misstep on Lisandro Martinez at the start of a stunning long counter that led to Mostafa Zico sliding the ball into the Argentinian net.

The one who was fighting for a goal in this competition was withdrawn due to a small mistake at the back of the game. It seemed like too much work. It also gave Argentina and Messi a chance to relax. Re-refereeing the Attia-Martinez incident was not what VAR delivered. Francois Letexier is a good referee and the poor VAR intervention did not help him. Or a picture of the game. Let’s keep it fair.

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Some Americans in our hotel seemed very interested in the Switzerland-Colombia penalty shootout. The set-piece element and the emotional exploration are really appealing. Apart from the stuttering trend and the development of goalkeepers (Gregor Kobel was successful in Switzerland), it was difficult to explain why so many penalties were missed at this World Cup – 17 out of 49 – when there was so much research and practice.

Mainly, where have all these penalty takers at center back gone? Where are the modern versions of Sergio Ramos, Ronald Koeman, Fernando Hierro and David Unsworth?

Or David O’Leary of the Republic of Ireland against Romania in Italy ’90. “The nation is holding its breath,” commentator George Hamilton said as O’Leary walked to the venue. The Arsenal defender was confident in his plan: he placed it firmly to Silviu Lung’s left. Nothing sweet, no stuttering run, or cocky Panenka. Just believe in the techniques, and focus. “Yes!” Hamilton exclaimed as Lung went the wrong way. O’Leary was a volunteer, and his success was based on self-confidence. As Harry Maguire’s punishments are. His kicks are always hit. Unfortunately, Maguire was left out by Tuchel.

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I knew England’s performance at the Azteca was a win for friends when I got a call from BBC Radio Scotland. Twice. They wanted to praise England. And you know for sure that football has taken over every part of the nation’s imagination when Radio 4 seniors get in touch. It’s like being called to the headmaster’s lecture to explain what happened on the playground.

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Miami sees a Viking attack on a longboat. A Norse Atlantic Airways flight from Oslo – branded as a “long-haul” flight – carries 338 Norwegian fans across the Atlantic to see Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard and company against England. Organizers insist that match tickets are not included, and fans are going to the secondary market where the highest ticket price is currently $10,520 (£7,800). To keep the passengers happy on board, the crew will organize musicals and, of course, many versions of Viking Row. It will be interesting to see if there are other European carriers that transport more Norwegians. Erlingus is an example.

Check out Henry Winter’s entire World Cup Diary here