BUENOS AIRES (Argentina) — Nervous excitement and rowdy cheers turned into anguished groans, nailbiting tension and tears, as Argentines’ hope of yet another epic comeback led by Lionel Messi in the World Cup fizzled out against Spain.
At the Cafe Relax bar in the historic centre of Buenos Aires, fans with tears in their eyes after the final whistle blew on the 1-0 defeat said that what saddened them most was that it was almost certainly 39-year-old Messi’s last shot at a World Cup.
“I feel empty. Empty because of Messi, because I won’t see him in a World Cup again. This is the last one,” said Camilo Cichero, a 22-year-old architecture student who was comforting his crying friend.
“It’s not how we expected it to go. At least it gives me peace of mind knowing he’s already won everything there was to win,” Cichero added according to AFP.
Composing himself, his friend Juan Saenz, 22, a law student said: “This was the last of Messi …it was the very end, and it finished this way.”
“I was born while Messi was playing, and this was the end of that era.”
But it was not all tears.
Around the city fireworks went off, car horns honked, and thousands of fans still made their way to the iconic Obelisk, the traditional place for football celebrations.
Initially crestfallen, they soon began partying again to celebrate their team and many said that despite the defeat, they would take to the streets to welcome the team home on Monday.
“Thank you so much, players!!! You fought until the very end. Argentina will always stand tall,” President Javier Milei wrote on X.
