It was billed as The Last Hurrah. One of the major plotlines for the World Cup was that of Lionel Messi slaloming towards a second triumph in the greatest show on earth and thus earning the approbation of best of all time.
A more minor theme was the unlikely tilt at a first World Cup success for Cristiano Ronaldo.
It all ended in tears. And jeers.
At 39 and 41 respectively, Messi and Ronaldo are unlikely to come back for an encore at the very top of international football. Yet, after decades as wondrous stars, they have plunged in the affections of the wider world.
The reaction has been dramatic and ungrateful. Global football plc owes much to the pair. More importantly, they have given joy to supporters – not least to those who had no affiliation to their club or international sides.
The designation of GOAT is absurd but great fun. Who can resist naming the greatest player of all time? But it will never be satisfactorily resolved because, firstly, the appreciation of footballers is a matter for aesthetics, not physical measurements.
Lionel Messi’s World Cup ended in tears but in truth he had an incredible tournament
Secondly, the game has changed dramatically in the 21st century, providing a safer platform for skilled players because of more rigorous refereeing and better surfaces. Players in the second half of the 20th century faced serious assaults on pitches that resembled sand pits or mud heaps.
However, Messi and Ronaldo were both eager to press their cases for the mythical award of GOAT and this was both a joy and an irritant to the world.
The joy came in simply watching them and then being offered their stats by their fevered followers. Messi: eight Ballons d’Or, 91 goals in a calendar year, an Olympic gold medal and four Champions Leagues. Ronaldo: 976 goals with 140 of them in the Champions League, titles in England, Spain, Italy and, er, Saudi Arabia and five Ballons d’Or.
The irritation came, and still comes, in the nature of the discourse about their respective abilities and personalities. Messi was painted as some sort of Mother Teresa of football. He is not. One leading figure who knows both Messi and Ronaldo well once said: ‘Messi in private is what people think Ronaldo is in private. Ronaldo in private is what people think Messi is in private.’
The message was that the Argentinian was no paragon of virtue, no passive character. And, frankly, how could he be? He has been groomed for the very top since a child in Rosario. He has undergone hormone treatment. He has lived a life where everybody wanted something and saw him as the one to give it.
He made his professional debut 22 years ago. He has been at the top of the game almost since that moment. He has gained accolades and power. He is not afraid to wield the latter.
Cristiano Ronaldo would’ve wanted to end on a high but was a shadow of himself this summer
Messi has an acute awareness of his greatness in commercial terms and in matters of how he plays, who he plays with, both players and clubs. He was held in awe by Argentine players but there was a coolness in his homeland among fans. That was largely dispelled by the World Cup victory in 2022 but Diego Maradona is still the Pibe D’Oro (the golden urchin) in Argentina.
Ronaldo, Messi’s seemingly eternal rival, is in contrast the undisputed King of Portugal. Memories of Eusebio have faded and Luis Figo was brilliant but a lesser player.
Ronaldo’s star has waned in recent years as Messi has risen. Once it was a veritable mano a mano for both with the GOAT at the prize. This was conducted on social media, interviews with contemporaries and subtle quotes from both heroes. It was tiresome.
The verdict seemed to be heading to Messi in recent years, certainly in respect of the rivalry with Ronaldo and less certainly over the greatest of all time.
Then came the World Cup. Both Messi and Ronaldo came, saw and were conquered. Ronaldo was heavily criticised for his impotence in front of goal and his dwindling powers that were recognised by everyone save his national team manager. It was harsh but it was a narrative that was shouted and so was heard around the world. Many accepted it.
The Messi story was more intriguing. He arrived for a coronation but was despatched on a tumbril. His fall from grace is astonishing given that in the tournament he scored a hat-trick, gave vintage displays against Egypt and England, and ended as FIFA’s second most valuable player, winning the silver ball.
Ronaldo and Messi had some titanic tussles during their time at Real Madrid and Barcelona
Social media is now bristling with fabricated quotes of players denigrating the once great one, his poll rating is on a par with Herod at the fun fours, and there has been an outpouring of polemic criticising his character and his ambition to be placed at the very top of the game.
First, Messi is a genius. They are not all nice chaps. Phil Spector built the Wall of Sound but was a killer. Pablo Picasso changed art but left a trail of destroyed women in his wake. Messi’s sins, in contrast, are relatively minor. The most egregious was his attempt to have Marc Cucurella of Spain sent off in the final.
That moment, though, was stunning for many commentators. He was not the Messi Messiah but a particularly naughty boy.
More pertinent, however, was his performance. He was obviously a fading power. He was not the Maradona of ’86 who could drag his team over the line against all odds.
His demise and that of Ronaldo have been greeted with glee and some spite. Yet surely even the most casual observer of football in this decade must express a deep gratitude to both.
This observer has been fortunate to see both on many occasions. They rarely disappoint. Here are two glimpses. I once watched Messi score a breakaway goal against Real Madrid. He had to hit the ball perfectly into two square feet of space. He had to do it with one touch, an emphatic strike on the run. Of course, he did so.
Ronaldo and Messi share a typically cold embrace ahead of a friendly international in 2014
I also saw Ronaldo race past in a Champion League semi-final at the Emirates. It was like watching a thoroughbred but one with the kick of a mule. It was a fleeting moment but one that stays with me almost 20 years on.
More precisely, Messi and Ronaldo have – or had – a special power. It can be summed up thus: there was a palpable sense of anticipation whenever they received the ball. They were the rescuers of lost causes, the scorers of wondrous goals, the providers of moments that simply cannot be forgotten.
Neither, of course, may be the GOAT. Until AI takes over completely – probably in time for the next World Cup – that designation is personal and subjective. My view, incidentally, is that Messi is not the best Argentine player ever, though he shades Ronaldo. This simple sentence, of course, is an invitation to argument.
But can we agree on this? Ronaldo and Messi proved one of the greatest double acts in the history of football. They changed the way we looked at the game and they broke record after record. Their scoring exploits alone are daft, yet they gave so much more.
Messi and Ronaldo vied for football’s top prizes and accolades for the best part of 20 years
They are worthy inheritors of the lineage of Maradona, Pele and Cruyff. And we had both of them at the same time. It was an era that should be celebrated. It will certainly be remembered.
The best player in the world is now Rodrigo Hernandez Cascante, better known as Rodri. He has substantial talents and is devastatingly efficient. He is to be respected but will find genuine love harder to find in the world beyond Spain.
Ronaldo and Messi have left the stage to jibes and criticism. It is the weary fate of sporting greatness. It often ends in a slow handclap rather than riotous applause.
But this was a double act that entertained and divided the world. It was some performance. And both maintained it for more than 20 years. I am thankful to have been a witness to it.
