Some people can close their eyes. We got variations on that theme at least twice a year for the best part of a decade. And, increasingly, you had to wade through a mountain of psychodrama and s***housery to find the high-end football hidden within El Clasico’s most stormy period.
But this is different. Almost certainly in their last World Cup, Messi and Ronaldo – arguably the two best players of their era, arguably the two greatest of all time – will inevitably meet in the final.
This seismic, dream World Cup final clash is still on, although both Argentina and Portugal have reached the quarter-finals through unexpected twists and turns. More is definitely in store.
The Argentine has a support base that extends beyond the tens of thousands of Albiceleste fans who have made the pilgrimage to Qatar, willing to work the fifth time Messi has been asked, to win and align with the biggest prize of all. Himself in church with Diego Maradona.
Argentina has become a de facto second team for many. “If we can’t do it, we hope Messi will,” is a common sentiment. The true extent of this focus and pressure fueled or withdrawn remains to be seen, and a canny Netherlands side led by old master Louis van Gaal. They will be sure to claw at any cracks in the face.
Lionel Scaloni’s side reached the World Cup on the back of a 36-game unbeaten run and their victory in last year’s Copa America, ending the country’s 28-year wait and Messi’s long personal quest for a major international trophy.
It should have been a more assured and composed Argentina. Two early second-half goals from Saudi Arabian attackers Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari helped put the roof on the home side. Messi’s first-half penalty was converted and his side suffered a resounding 2-1 defeat. In his tournament opener.
It was surprising how quickly Argentina returned to the chaos that marked their 2018 campaign in Russia as events unfolded at the Lucelle Stadium. It meant suffocating tension in the second leg against Mexico, which remained goalless until the 64th minute when Messi’s brilliant strike sealed a 2-0 win at pace.
The 35-year-old was at his best as they beat Poland by the same scoreline to top Group C, but Messi’s first-half penalty saved by Wojciech Szczesny only caused further nerve-shredding.
It was a similar story in the last 16, with goals from Messi and Julian Alvarez threatening to smooth sailing against Australia until Enzo Fernandez’s own goal sent everything through the mill again to a 2-1 victory.
The pace and sense of purpose around Argentina is picking up some of the slack as their patterns of play disappear. Fernandez scored a great goal on the right against Mexico and is a brilliant talent, while Alexis McAllister’s intelligent industry has seen him shine in midfield.
Still, a pre-tournament loss to Giovanni Lo Celso robbed Scoloni of control in central areas and forced him to rifle through different formations. As long as the Argentine is winning, that looks like an impressive versatility. If it all goes wrong, he will face charges of indecisiveness.
Alvarez could have ended the tournament with a breakout start, but that was partly made possible by the fact that Messi’s first-choice strike partner, Lautaro Martinez, left his shooting boots in Milan.
Such tinkering with an attacking configuration around a key man is nothing compared to what Portugal head coach Fernando Santos did before their last-16 clash with Switzerland.
At times, Selecao’s campaign has felt like a vehicle for twisting and turning Ronaldo soap opera. Since joining the team, he has become the World Cup’s most high-profile free agent, breaking ties with Manchester United that had turned mutually toxic.
Ronaldo became the first player in history to score in five World Cups with a penalty in the first win against Ghana. He tried to claim another against Uruguay before Adidas’ in-ball technology rather humiliatingly proved he hadn’t touched Bruno Fernandes’ cross before settling into the net.
The 37-year-old then reacted angrily to being substituted during the surprise defeat to South Korea. Santos, a staunch Ronaldo loyalist, took exception to the latest goal in this scorched-earth phase of the striker’s career.
“I really didn’t like it,” Santos said. “These issues are resolved behind closed doors. This has been resolved. Full stop on this matter, now all attention is focused on tomorrow’s game.”
Part of the resolution was Goncalo Ramos starting ahead of Ronaldo, who watched from the bench as the 21-year-old Benfica forward scored a hat-trick in a 6-1 win. Ronaldo’s involvement was limited to hitting a free-kick against the wall and having the goal disallowed for long-distance offside.
“We wanted a team that played with a lot of fluidity,” Santos explained later. “Cristiano is more stable, he stays in a more determined role towards the box. Goncalo has different characteristics. He is very dynamic and he showed us that.”
It is very difficult for Ronaldo to see a way back into the starting line-up ahead of the quarter-final meeting with a Moroccan side who have played just once at the tournament, promising a much different challenge than the porous Swiss.
Is there any point in pining for a final between Messi and Ronaldo when one of them can’t play? Brazil and France are strong teams on both sides of the draw in any case.
In short, of course, it is. The spectacle will be even more incomparable. If Messi gets to play in a final that Ronaldo doesn’t, regardless of the outcome, could that settle the eternal debate? Obviously not, because nothing will happen.
Unless France is involved in the World Cup finals – in our dream scenario England or Portugal would have to hold their own – they are in a tight affair.
Take Les Bleus’ 3-0 win over Brazil in 1998 and 4-2 against Croatia out of the equation, and all but the finals going back to 1986 have been decided by one-goal margins or penalties. The exception is Brazil’s win over Germany in 2002, a game that was 0-0 at halftime and where Ronaldo Nazario scored himself and his team’s second in the 11th minute.
All logic suggests that Portugal’s final against Argentina will be suffocatingly tight. In such a situation, it is inconceivable that Santos would leave the greatest goal-scorer in international history on the bench.
At some point, Messi and Ronaldo will be fighting together towards an end post that remains out of reach, inspired by and saddled with the sort of international-team stuff that never hindered them from their club-level peaks.
He who navigates imperfection and randomness wins the greatest victory of all. It will be a final like no other. The fact that it can still happen is encouraging.