Diego Simeone on Lionel Messi leading Argentina past England into the World Cup Final.
đď¸ Reporter: âDiego, once again Lionel Messi has carried Argentina on the biggest stage. How does he keep doing it?â
đŁď¸ Diego Simeone:
âBecause pressure doesnât break Lionel Messi it obeys him. When the entire stadium is shaking, when millions of Argentines can barely breathe, Messi becomes the calmest man on the pitch. Thatâs why heâs different.â
âEngland threw everything at Argentina. They pressed, they fought, they believed they could stop him. But the cruel reality is this: you can chase Messi for 90 minutes and heâll still find the two seconds that destroy your entire game. Thatâs exactly what he did tonight. Two assists. Two moments. One ticket to another World Cup final.â
âPeople will talk about those passes for years, but they still wonât understand them. Those werenât ordinary assists they were acts of genius. He sees spaces that donât exist for anyone else. By the time defenders realise whatâs happening, Argentina are already celebrating.â
âThe biggest thing Messi gives Argentina isnât goals or assists. Itâs belief. The second he touches the ball, eleven Argentine players suddenly believe theyâre unstoppable. The crowd believes. The country believes. Thatâs the power of a true leader.â
âAnd letâs stop pretending this is normal. A 39-year-old should not be deciding World Cup semi-finals against one of the strongest teams on the planet. Yet here he is again, carrying an entire nation on his shoulders without asking for sympathy, without making excuses, just producing magic when it matters most.â
âIâve always admired warriors, and Lionel Messi is the greatest warrior football has ever produced. He doesnât scream. He doesnât need to. He lets the ball speak, and when it does, the whole football world falls silent.â
âEvery generation waits for a player who can make a nation dream. Argentina didnât just find one they found Lionel Messi. And tonight, once again, he rescued an entire country. If thatâs not greatness, then greatness doesnât exist.â
Neymar on Messi changing the game for Argentina:
đŁď¸ âPeople will say they're surprised by what Messi did today, but for those of us who know him, this is who he has always been. Even after everything he has achieved in football, he still finds ways to amaze the world.
When the game becomes difficult and Argentina need someone to step up, Messi takes responsibility. He has this incredible ability to slow the game down, understand every moment and decide it on his own. That's something very few players in football history have ever possessed.
No matter how much pressure is on him or how hard the challenge may be, he always finds a way. That's what greatness looks like.
I've said it many times and I'll say it again,Lionel Messi is the best player I have ever seen kick a football. I was fortunate enough to play alongside him and witness his genius every single day. What people see on the pitch is only a small part of how special he truly is.
This is why he is loved so deeply in Argentina and respected all over the world. He doesn't just win matches for his country,he inspires an entire generation every time he steps onto the pitch.
Lionel Messi doesn't need to prove anything anymore, but somehow he continues to do the impossible. That's why he is Lionel Messi.â
đ¨đŁď¸David Beckham on Englandâs 2:1 defeat to Argentina, says Messi is the GREATEST Player of all time:
âFootball has a poetic way of completing its own stories. England once saw the Hand of God⌠tonight, they witnessed the Left Foot of God. Messi didnât just play the game, he conducted it like a maestro leading an orchestra. Every touch was a sentence, every pass was a masterpiece, and those two assists were brushstrokes on footballâs greatest canvas.
People spend their careers chasing greatness. Messi has spent his career redefining it. When the pressure reaches its highest peak, he becomes the calmest man in the stadium. Thatâs a gift you canât coach, you canât buy, and you certainly canât defend against.
Iâve played with and against some of the greatest players this sport has ever seen, but what Lionel Messi continues to do on the biggest stage is beyond statistics, itâs legacy written in real time. Nights like this arenât just victories; theyâre chapters in football history.
For me, the debate is over. Lionel Messi isnât just one of the greatest players of all time⌠he is the greatest player of all time.â
âđď¸Mixed Zone
đď¸ Zlatan IbrahimoviÄ on Messi and Argentinaâs comeback:
đŁď¸ âPeople always say the Premier League is too difficult and that Messi wouldnât survive against Premier League teams. Tonight, he faced the Premier League himself⌠and he won.â
Pep Guardiola on Lionel Messiâs masterclass against England.
đŁď¸ âPeople keep asking me how Messi is still doing this at 39 years old. My answer is simple because football has never seen anyone like him. Age defeats everyone, but somehow it refuses to defeat Lionel Messi. What he did tonight was beyond football⌠it was art.â
âEngland didnât play against an old player. They played against the greatest mind this sport has ever produced. Two assists in a World Cup semi-final, controlling the rhythm of the biggest match on earth as if he were playing in his backyard. That is not normal. It is impossible to teach.â
âIâve stood on the touchline and watched Leo do things that left me speechless. Tonight, sitting at home, he made me feel exactly the same. Every touch had purpose. Every pass carried danger. Every decision was perfect. He didnât run the most but he made everyone else run for him.â
âThe frightening part is that he no longer needs his young legs. His football brain is ten seconds ahead of everyone else. By the time defenders realise what is happening, the ball is already in the back of the net or a teammate is celebrating. Thatâs genius. Pure genius.â
âPeople obsess over goals, but tonight Messi reminded the world that football is about creating moments no one else can imagine. Two assists that changed a nationâs history. Two passes that carried Argentina into another World Cup final. That is the definition of greatness.â
âAt 39, most legends are sitting in television studios talking about football. Messi is still writing football history. He isnât surviving at this level heâs dominating it. Thatâs why I will always say there has never been, and there will never be, another player like Lionel Messi.â
âWhen this World Cup is over, donât just remember the trophies or the statistics. Remember that you witnessed a 39-year-old genius walk into a World Cup semi-final against one of the strongest teams in the world⌠and make them look ordinary. We are watching the final chapters of the greatest football story ever written.â
Lo de estos dos tangueros, MAMĂ. Lo que se dice GUAPEZA para jugar al balompiĂŠ.
PĂcaros. Atrevidos. Birmingham y Londres corrieron al ritmo de San Justo y San MartĂn.
FenĂłmenos de ĂŠpoca.
Vean nada mĂĄs esta secuencia. Vean nada mĂĄs las LĂGRIMAS DE FELICIDAD de Enzo FernĂĄndez despuĂŠs de clasificarse a una nueva final de Copa del Mundo. Hoy no hay REMONTADA ARGENTINA sin ĂL. Sin el 24. Sin el corazĂłn del equipo. Sin el que nunca dejĂł de pedirla. Sin el que nunca dejĂł de creer. Sin el que nunca dejĂł de luchar. Su golazo para iniciar la voltereta YA forma parte de la historia dorada de los Mundiales. Y sĂ, con apenas 25 aĂąos de edad, ya es una LEYENDA TOTAL del fĂştbol mundial.
QUĂ VIVA EL FĂTBOL DE ENZO JEREMĂAS.