Messi fighting demons on a birthday

ST PETERSBURG: It is a birthday Lionel Messi would possibly not like to have a good time. Since the sector is aware of every detail of his life, it's tough to forget about the day the legend finished 31 years of his life, a ways away from Rosario where he was born and were given married. It's additionally rather a distance from Barcelona, where Messi has lived since he was 11, and where he learnt easy methods to mesmerize the sector with a ball at his toes.

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Just outside the entrance of Argentina's base camp in Bronnitsy, posters announce that the city will have a good time Messi's birthday. A Moscow confectioner has even created a life-sized cake for the Argentinian star.

Not having spoken to the click since the devastating loss towards Croatia, the greatest footballer of this era is fighting demons within - of leading the Albieceleste, now in his fourth World Cup, sporting the burden of expectations of the 43 million Argentinians and having failed them. After the results towards Iceland and Croatia particularly, the South American country has been engulfed through darkish clouds of depression. The flock of reporters who made the 13,500 km adventure to Russia, are discovering it arduous to stay their smiles on. It is because Messi is not smiling.

In the two matches and the few coaching periods open to the media, there was rarely a moment when Messi smiled. Nor could he make the sector happy together with his game.

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Sinuous runs with the ball, every child's dream, have not been seen even once in the 180 mins he has been on the field here. Messi turns out lost in the forest of markers in the crowded midfield, struggling to recreate his magical powers of dribbling or to conjure the spectacular out of the unusual.

News leaking out from the Argentina citadel is not blissful either. Staying at the back of the safety and seclusion of their cocoon in Bronnitsy, Argentina will best seem in Saint Petersburg, the venue of their last group engagement towards Nigeria, on Monday.

Mayor of Bornitsy Viktor Nevolin and a boy lower a birthday cake including a statue depicting Lionel Messi all the way through a party organized through town of Bronnitsy. (AFP Photo)

Jorge Sampaoli, the embattled trainer, is attempting to stay his flock together. But how can he stop Diego Maradona from firing his salvo? Critical as he usually is of the status quo, Maradona informed the Spanish press, "Everyone believed that the technician was going to solve the problems of Argentina with computers, with drones, with 14 assistants. Argentina do not know what they play, they have no solution at all, that is, in the midfield, in defence or in attack. Argentina did not have the ball."

He added that Messi played "as he had to play" and it's tough for him to resolve the issues of his teammates. However not like Messi and Maradona is also, except for using their left-foot, the sector loves the contrast and comparison.

Sampaoli has conceded after the Three-0 humiliation towards Croatia that he's confounded through the implosion. "If I had set things up differently, things might have turned out much better," he later said.

Sergio Aguero, additionally having a woeful World Cup, admitted: "I feel anger and sadness. Although there is still a chance. Now we depend on others but there is still hope. We have to wait and try to beat Nigeria."

John Carlin, a renowned sports activities writer and the author of the guide that inspired the iconic film Invictus, wrote an open letter in an Argentinian newspaper dissecting the current Argentinian nationwide crisis. He wound up the letter pronouncing, "An extraterrestrial watching the Argentina-Croatia match would have to have concluded that the star of Barcelona was not Messi but Ivan Rakitic. Which is ridiculous, as the good soldier Rakitic would be the first to recognize. Which gives the measure of how useless is the centre of the Argentine field. Which, seeing Messi dress the same colors as those mediocre, makes me think of that phrase we have in English: a pearl among pigs."

Messi's 31st might not be as happy as it he would have favored it to be. Still, let's want him a very happy birthday. Perhaps the brand new yr will convey happier tidings.