With Messi retiring from international football in 2 days, I want to remind you all of this iconic moment..
During the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Messi missed games for Argentina due to injury. The Argentine national team played 8 games without him, losing 7 of them and winning just 1. During those 8 games, Di María played every single one and didn’t score a single goal, registering just 1 assist.
Then Messi suddenly returned from injury, and what happened was unbelievable.
Argentina beat Uruguay 1-0, with Messi scoring the only goal.
They beat Chile 1-0, with Messi scoring the only goal.
They beat Colombia 3-0, with Messi scoring 1 goal and providing 2 assists.
Then, in the decisive game for World Cup qualification, Messi scored a hat trick against Ecuador and secured Argentina’s place at the World Cup after they had been on the verge of missing out entirely.
At the time, qualifying felt like winning a trophy.
The Argentina national team of Lionel Messi.