{"id":22476,"date":"2023-01-03T13:56:14","date_gmt":"2023-01-03T18:56:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=22476"},"modified":"2024-07-05T10:11:34","modified_gmt":"2024-07-05T14:11:34","slug":"lionel-messi-gives-glory-to-god-after-argentinas-world-cup-victory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2023\/01\/lionel-messi-gives-glory-to-god-after-argentinas-world-cup-victory.html","title":{"rendered":"Lionel Messi Gives Glory To God After Argentina\u2019s World Cup Victory"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Ververidis Vasilis \/ Shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After their startling first-game defeat by Saudi Arabia in the World Cup, Argentina ultimately returned to\u00a0<\/span>take the championship<\/span><\/a>, beating returning champs France 4-2 in penalties. It would be the country\u2019s first World Cup win since 1986. Two of the goals belonged to Argentina\u2019s team captain and soccer superstar, Lionel Messi. Messi has been playing competitively since 2004, but this is his first time winning the World Cup. Writing in Spanish, Messi took to his\u00a0<\/span>Instagram<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and posted a picture of himself holding the World Cup trophy. \u201cWORLD CHAMPIONS!!!!!!! I dreamed about it so many times\u2026\u201d he wrote excitedly. He thanked his family and supporters, stating that when Argentinians united, they could achieve their goals.<\/span><\/p>\n

In an interview following the win, Messi put down rumors that he would <\/span>retire<\/span><\/a>\u00a0immediately, although he has said in the past that this would be his last World Cup series. \u201cI love soccer, what I do. I enjoy being part of the national team the group. I want to enjoy a couple of more matches being a world champion,\u201d he said. He also thanked God for giving him the World Cup win saying, \u201cI craved for this so much. I knew God would bring this gift to me, I had the feeling that this [World Cup] was the one. It took so long, but here it is. We suffered a lot, but we managed to do it.\u201d This is not the first time Messi has acknowledged God throughout his career. Prior to the team\u2019s World Cup win, when he was asked about whether this would be the year he finally won, he\u00a0<\/span>said<\/span><\/a>, \u201cI trust that God knows the right timing. He will decide my fate.\u201d After he\u00a0<\/span>left Barcelona<\/span><\/a>\u00a0last year to play for Paris, he\u00a0<\/span>said<\/span><\/a>, \u201cIt was God who made me play like this. Obviously, [God] gave me that gift. I have no doubt about that. He chose me, and, obviously, I then did everything possible to try to improve myself and achieve success. But without His help, I would not have gotten anywhere.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to his two goals, Messi was voted best player in Qatar and <\/span>became the first player<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in history to win two FIFA World Cup Golden Balls. With his decision to continue to play soccer, at least for the time being, Argentina\u2019s head coach Lionel Scaloni was hopeful that he may stick around for the next World Cup. \u201cWe need to save him for the next World Cup \u2013 2026,\u201d he\u00a0<\/span>said<\/span><\/a>. \u201cIf he wants to keep playing, he will be with us. He is more than entitled to decide what he wants to do with his career now.\u201d The next world cup will be played across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. There have also been\u00a0<\/span>comparisons<\/span><\/a>\u00a0of Messi to Diego Maradona, the Brazilian superstar who led Argentina to its last World Cup win in 1986. Maradona passed in November 2020, and his absence was noted by Scaloni. \u201cWe are such a football passionate country, and if he were here, he would have enjoyed it so much. I wish he was here to enjoy this moment,\u201d he said. For his part, Messi has stated he has no plans to take the title of GOAT from Maradona. \u201cEven if I played for a million years, I\u2019d never come close to Maradona,\u201d Messi said. \u201cNot that I\u2019d want to anyway. He\u2019s the greatest there\u2019s ever<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After their startling first-game defeat by Saudi Arabia in the World Cup, Argentina ultimately returned to\u00a0take the championship, beating returning champs France 4-2 in penalties. It would be the country\u2019s first World Cup win since 1986. Two of the goals belonged to Argentina\u2019s team captain and soccer superstar, Lionel Messi. Messi has been playing competitively…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":664,"featured_media":37956,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-television"],"yoast_head":"\nLionel Messi Gives Glory To God After Argentina\u2019s World Cup Victory<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Argentinian soccer star, Lionel Messi, praises God following his World Cup victory.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2023\/01\/lionel-messi-gives-glory-to-god-after-argentinas-world-cup-victory.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" 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