Argentina vs France match at the FIFA world cup had all the ingredients of a thriller. The match played at Kazan was important as a defeat for either team would mark their exit from the world cup. The match was played before a capacity crowd and led to the exit of Argentina from the World Cup. It also marked the end of a great player Lionel Messi, who simply failed to fire on all cylinders right through the tournament.
The Financial Express has reported that the defeat of Argentina 4-3 at the hands of France marked the nadir of the Argentinian football team especially as they had a 2-1 lead at halftime.
France win
Argentina had started the tournament badly with a defeat in the very first match. They lost to Iceland which in itself was almost like a catastrophe but it signalled the shape of things to come. For the elimination round against France, much was expected of their star player and captain, Messi. But as in earlier matches, he just failed to play his normal game. Argentina began the second half with a precarious lead of 2-1 but minutes into the second half, three quick goals from France, including a brace from Kylian Mbappe, ended the South American nation’s journey in the tournament.
Messi and Mbappe
The team tried hard but their main player Messi was just not able to raise his game. Argentina lost and was thus eliminated from the tournament.
The player of the match was Kylian Mbappe who scored two goals in a superb performance in Kazan. He is only 19 and if he trains and works hard he could, in years to come, be a legend in the world of football.
Messi is 31, which is considered "old" in football. He will have to think about what to do next. Argentina desperately needs another player to shoulder the work along with Messi.
There is no doubt that he is a great player, but a player must fire at crucial times and The Sun has reported that Messi failed badly in this world cup. The great Diego Maradona was there but his presence brought little solace for the Argentina team. Earlier, the exit of Germany and now Argentina has thrown open the gates for the winner.
Its anybody's guess who will eventually triumph.
Future
The conduct of the World Cup by Russia has brought accolades from many people including US president Donald Trump. He praised the conduct of the tournament at a meeting with the Portuguese president. The next world cup is now four years away and likely to take place in Qatar. Messi will be 35 then and his reflexes will not be better. This World Cup may be the swan song of Lionel Messi
