What does the 2022 World Cup final mean for Argentina?

* Argentina - France: 10pm today, on MetaSports.

It all started spontaneously, in a place in the desert called Al Janoub. This is where most of the 40,000 Argentine fans go to Qatar to watch the 2022 World Cup. They painted another stadium blue and white and celebrated enthusiastically when the home team reached the sixth World Cup final. .

In the early days of the 2022 World Cup, an Argentinian musician named Mati Teclas played Colombian cumbia on keyboards where he and his friends were renting. Many Argentinians were excited about the music, gathering both inside and outside the basic room on the ground floor of Teclas. Then the number of people responded so much that Teclas decided to bring his music to the street to perform.

Since then, it has become a nightly ritual: Teclas, 35, his keyboard and thousands of fans, sing the words of Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a ilusionar (roughly translated as 'You guys') , now we have hope') at a party that goes on for hours under the jet-black Doha sky.

With about 40,000 fans from home to Qatar, mainly concentrated in Al Janoub, Argentina is the team with the most fans cheering since the knockout stage, on par with Morocco - a country with a geographical distance. much closer to Qatar. "This is our character," said Valentina, 25, who lives in Al Janoub with her brothers. "The team represents us and we represent them. Football is what makes our country proud and we always follow in the footsteps of the World Cup team. We always follow them wherever they go, no matter how far away".

Her cousin, Augustina, wanted to talk about Lionel Messi while the singing calmed down to prepare for the Vamos Argentina national anthem. "Messi holds the torch for us, no matter how hard everything else is," she said.

Augustina talks about the fact that Argentina is on the verge of recession, once again. In supermarkets back home, prices are rising every month and inflation is at 100% this year. Triple-zero inflation is new in Buenos Aires, and the current fear of supermarkets being looted again isn't anything out of the ordinary.

"Going to Qatar to watch the 2022 World Cup is very expensive," said Carlos, about 30. "But we're still here to see Messi lift the trophy, and to say that we've all gone through this journey together. We will tell our children and grandchildren about it."

The deep-rooted beliefs of the Argentinians seem very similar to "Football is coming home" - the catchphrase of the media as well as players, English fans, before big tournaments like Euros or World Cups.

"It's belief," La Nacion's famous football columnist, Ezequiel Fernandez Moores, told British newspaper Sportsmail.

The Argentines always think that they are the number one football in South America, even though they have only won the World Cup twice, while Brazil - the homeland of the rich samba football is holding a record of 5 gold cup lifts. When reminded of this achievement gap, the Argentines will return that their team has won 6 more Copa America titles than Brazil, and achieved more success in the Copa Libertadores - the tournament is likened to the Champions. League of South America.

"Between Brazil and Argentina there is always competition. It is always the same," another Argentine journalist - Fernando Czyz - told Sport Mail. "But it's not just about the World Cup. We beat Brazil in the Copa America final at the Maracana last year. That's why Brazil wanted to meet Argentina at the 2022 World Cup, but they brought their suitcases home. water too soon".

Even Messi's sublime performance in recent weeks has not obscured a brief glimpse of the immense pressure under Lionel Scaloni's men - Argentina hasn't won the World Cup since 1986. Pressure. That shows when Argentina froze before Saudi Arabia on the opening day, or let the Netherlands equalize the score and put the quarter-finals into a penalty shootout.

More than anyone else, Messi doesn't need any reminders of the reaction in Buenos Aires to the team's defeat in the 2018 World Cup. Quebrados (broken) or Sin Alma (no soul) were among the media's headlines. through Argentina.

After the 2022 World Cup, the majority of players will not be seen playing in their home country, other than Argentina's matches. "When the national team plays, we feel like a First World country," Moores said. "After that, they went back to play for the host club and left us. We needed them but when they left, we felt they were traitors."

But now, at Al Janoub, nearly all the Argentinians present believe that every factor is in favor of Argentina at the 2022 World Cup. In Russia four years ago, they lost 0-3 to Croatia, a score they reversed. reverse when rematching in the semi-finals on December 13.

Argentina also lost to France 3-4 in the 1/8 round, when the average age difference in that match was Argentina 30, France 25. That year, playing with Messi became stifling for some players in the team. Argentina. They want to pass the ball to Messi so much that they can't find their own style in matches. Striker Paulo Dybala even admitted it.

But this time, in Qatar, Messi leads a group of younger players, with an average age of 27.8, competing in unison to maximize the qualities of this living legend. At Al Janoub, many fans asserted that Messi would have equal status with the late legendary Diego Maradona - who last took home the gold cup in 1986 - if Argentina beat France in the final.

However, there are still conflicting views. For many older Argentinians, Maradona will always be the god of football because of the charisma and rebellious spirit associated with his football genius. "I am the voice of the voiceless," Maradona once said. They loved Maradona's football most - the way he brought an ordinary team to glory in the 1986 final, against West Germany in Mexico's Estadio Azteca.

At another gathering of Argentina fans, by the sea in Al Wakrah, Juan Carlos Assan, aged 50 and with three friends, stressed that Maradona in 1986 was on a higher level than Messi in 2022.

"In all the years we've watched the team, we've only seen an Argentinian team better than this generation, in 1986," Assan said. "We hope, dream that Messi will lift the gold cup, to be able to thank him for his dedication and professionalism. But for the majority of Argentina fans, Messi will never be equal. row with Maradona - even as he lifts the trophy on Sunday."

Carlos also gestured to clarify the matter. "Messi here," he said, placing his hand on his chest. "And Maradona is here," Carlos continued, raising his hand above his head.

It was another brief conversation between Muchachos' performances, with the lyrics expressing the deep nationalist sentiments that the large number of Argentine fans brought to Qatar. A passage in the song reads: "I was born in Argentina, the land of Maradona and Messi, of children from the Falkland Islands, whom I will never forget". Messi and his teammates danced and sang this song together in the dressing room, after the 2-0 win over Mexico in the second round of the group stage.

This is a remake of a 2003 song originally titled Muchachos, esta noche me emborracho ('Boys, I'm going to get drunk tonight'), all about heartbreak. Now, all Argentinians feel that this time will be different.

"That's how the Argentinians watched the World Cup, over the years, with about 30,000 or 40,000 following and cheering on the team," Czyz said. "But this is a special World Cup because it's so difficult for everyone. It's a long, very expensive trip and they're going to have a very difficult time coming home. So, going to the World Cup is going to be very difficult. The 2022 World Cup will be very special."

That is the weight of the expectation that Messi and his teammates have to bear on the Lusail field today. This is definitely not a task for the faint of heart.