Lionel Messi is entering the last FIFA World Cup of his career, so many are rooting for the storybook ending of lifting the trophy that has long eluded him.
However, former Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino believes it’s not many rooting for Argentina: It’s everyone. During an appearance on talkSPORT, the Argentine stated that “everyone” in Qatar is cheering Messi on to win the competition.
The 50-year-old, who is in Qatar for the World Cup, noted the energy around Doha when talking about Messi.
“I can feel here that everyone, football people, wants to see Messi lift the World Cup trophy,” Pochettino said. “Everything Messi has given to football is like football should reward Messi by giving him the trophy. We need to wait; we need to see and hope everything will go well for Argentina.”
Messi’s World Cup didn’t get off to a good start after losing to Saudi Arabia, leading to many questioning whether Argentina would crash out in the group stage. However, the team has gotten back on course.
The CONMEBOL side picked up wins over Mexico and Poland to finish first in the group and set themselves up for a favorable matchup against Australia, possibly allowing them to reach the tournament’s quarterfinals.
