KANSAS CITY (Special Envoy).- The image of Lionel Messi appears on the oval screen, designed in the shape of an American football, and the audience erupts in applause. There are Americans with beer and popcorn, Latinos who traveled from different parts of the country to enjoy the experience of seeing the Rosario player and, above all, a crowd of Argentines who turn the debut into a continuity of the party that was experienced in Qatar: light blue and white t-shirts, flags and songs that are already part of the repertoire of this team. There is also something more difficult to explain. A feeling that has accompanied this team for years and that fuels the fans’ enthusiasm: the certainty that, even when problems appear, they always find a way to respond. Because it has Messiand because behind him there is a group that long ago learned to compete under pressure.
Argentina did not have a comfortable debut, but still beat Algeria 3-0, with three goals from Messi, who, with 16 goals, equaled the German Miroslav Klose as the top scorer in the World Cup. The first half numbers reflected that parity: shared possession, three shots per side and a single shot on goal. It was enough for him to appear Messi. After a great pass between the lines from Rodrigo De Paul, the captain invented a great goal to give the team the advantage and convert it into a World Cup for the fifth consecutive game.
Until then, the match had been changeable, with a goal disallowed for the team: one of Messifor a millimeter offside, and another by Fares Chaibi, also for an advanced position. Those two plays, in some way, anticipated what would be the first half. Every time Messi touched the ball, Argentina seemed to be close to the goal. But when Algeria accelerated and moved the ball in the final meters, they also found spaces to filter passes and create danger.
After the goal, Argentina He took possession of the ball, although without giving it more intensity, and it was difficult for him to identify the paths against an opponent who defended as a block, much closer to Luca Zidane than to Emiliano Martínez’s goal. Perhaps the memory of Saudi Arabia in Qatar 2022 influenced the team’s posture: far from despairing at 2-0, they opted to retain possession and maintain defensive balance. After all, the Africans also had fast and technically gifted footballers, capable of creating a scoring chance from very little.
The best Argentina vs. Algeria
After the hydration break, Argentina came back disconnected. It was difficult for him to chain passes, he began to abuse long deliveries towards Lautaro Martínez and gave up a share of prominence for which he could pay dearly. Argelia continued to prowl the area and filter passes that broke lines and found receivers inside the area. Then the figure of Lisandro Martínez grew, who justified his ownership by his speed to correct behind the backs of the full-backs and his ability to anticipate rival forwards.
And also that of Messiwho played with the experience of five World Cups on his shoulders, knowing when to accelerate, when to pause and when to make the ball run so that Argentina maintain control of the party. All in front of a stadium that was close to 90% full and with a clear majority of Argentine fans in the stands.
The changes of Lionel Scaloni They oxygenated the team at the right time, shortly after the start of the second half. Julián Álvarez, Nicolás González and Nahuel Molina entered. with them, Argentina He gained mobility, depth and speed in the last meters. And that new forward half-court dynamic allowed Messi He would free himself from marks and find more spaces to intervene, even when the physical wear and tear began to be noticeable. Backed by a very good job from Enzo Fernández, the usual contribution from Rodrigo De Paul and a solid second half from Alexis Mac Allister, number 10 began to build its magical night.
What came next was a gift for the more than 67,000 fans who practically filled the stadium and who, in some cases, paid up to $2,000 for a ticket. They were able to enjoy another Messi exhibition and begin to get excited about a team that, little by little, seems to be getting closer to its best version, even after a first half with doubts and with several players who are still far from their physical and football fullness.
Until the triumph of Argentinaalmost none of the main candidates for the title had managed to win in the premiere, except for France. For this reason, the victory also has value beyond the three points: it provides peace of mind in the table and reinforces confidence for what is to come. In the privacy of the coaching staff they understood that Algeria would be the most demanding rival of the first stage – then they will arrive Austria and Jordanin Dallas – and that a victory could give momentum to a team that did not arrive in the best conditions and needed a convincing performance to reaffirm itself. He achieved it from the result, but also from the personality to sustain himself in uncomfortable moments, the hierarchy of the world champions and the inexhaustible left foot of Messi. The captain was once again the star of the night and left the feeling that he still has a lot to offer. The national team, on the other hand, must still grow, raise its level to better accompany him, so that the weight does not always fall on him, and so that this story, as in Qatar, is sustained by the strength of the team as much as by the talent of its captain.
