According to the Mundo Deportivo, after Argentina's loss to Spain and failure to defend their title, pre-match and halftime speeches sparked controversy in the country.
Argentina was pursuing an almost impossible feat: winning the World Cup for the second consecutive time. They came very close to their goal, but ultimately lost to Spain, who were the best team in the tournament.
Beyond the result, Argentina is still searching for the reasons why this happened. No one understands why one of Scaloni's worst games as coach occurred on such an important day. There was not a single shot on target, nor the fighting spirit and gameplay that this team usually displays. The team defended very deep and committed frequent fouls on the field.
Therefore, Argentine media are discussing everything from significant events in the locker room to bizarre theories about players receiving certain messages. In any case, what is certain is that some of the speeches revealed before the match and after halftime were not what one would expect in a World Cup final. At least, many in Argentina, the 2026 World Cup runners-up, believe so.
Messi said before the match: "Come on, guys, calm down. Guys, we need to be calm. Just think about playing, forget everything else. We just play, that's all we think about."
In Argentina, these words have become a national discussion: Why did Messi ask everyone to forget everything? Was he referring to something specific?
If Messi's words have gone viral, a similar situation occurred with Emiliano Martínez's halftime speech. He said: "Guys, play with heart, do you hear me, with heart. Play forward, not backward. We want to win more than them. Cowards play backward, cowards play backward. Three passes, and we can find Messi. We can also play out from the back like that. We play forward."
Messi then added: "Personality, brothers, show personality. We've always had it, why not now? Come on! Let's go out and play!"
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