Lionel Messi is a World Cup winner. He must be a relieved man now. He surely has had enough of naysayers discounting his indelible legacy because of the lack of a World Cup trophy. Messi made them eat their words. Millions flocked to the capital city of Buenos Aires to pay tribute to the country’s biggest superstar of an era, as the triumphant Argentine squad snaked through the city in an open-bus parade. 

Among other things, the victory has also given the Argentines a much-needed respite, albeit momentarily, as they battle through a period of economic crisis. Messi earlier indicated this will be his last World Cup, but the outcome surely has changed his mind, and in the victory speech, he added he wants to play for Argentina for a few more years, as a world champion. 

The entire team rallied around Messi to bring him the elusive trophy. After Messi reached his hometown Rosario to celebrate with his family and friend, he called the radio journalist Andy Kusnetzoff, who has recently undergone surgery and wished him a speedy recovery. He also told Kusnetzoff to convey his regards to Hernán Casciari, whose three-minute narration of his story Lionel’s Suitcase moved him and his wife Antonela to tears.  

“I wanted to send you this audio because I was here [in Rosario] with Antonella… we were drinking mate, I started watching a little bit of Tik Tok,” said Messi. 

“What Hernán wrote, what he narrated… we both began to cry, because everything that he said was true. Anyways, I wanted to send a greeting to both of you. Please thank him (Casciari) and tell him that we heard it, we were moved, he made us cry. I want him to know,” he added. 

In Lionel’s suitcase, Hernan writes about how Messi remained grounded and didn’t forget his roots, even as he reached the pinnacle of the football world. Messi, despite spending over a decade in Spain, retained his native gaucho accent, and always ensured that he spends Christmas with his family in Rosario.  

Casciari couldn’t control his emotion and said, “the Nobel Prize for Literature and the Cervantes prize, or moving Messi with my story, I would have chosen what happened today.” 

You can read the English translation of an entire text here. 

Lead Image: Lionel Messi/Facebook