Lionel Messi remembered the Argentine legend Diego Maradona after joining the legend in executing a famous World Cup win over England.
Maradona scored two memorable goals against England in the 1986 World Cup to eliminate them. 30 years later, Messi provided two memorable assists against the same national team for the same result.
After Messi’s first-ever match against England, he was thinking about his legendary mentor and former coach.
Lionel Messi dedicates World Cup semis win to Diego Maradona
In a post-match interview, Messi made it clear that this win was for Maradona while wishing the legend was able to celebrate the win in heaven.
“I’m sure Diego is enjoying this so much from up above. It goes for him, this was always a very special day… I’m happy to be able to give him this joy, and I hope he celebrates it however he wants from up there and enjoys it. We are lucky to have lived in Diego’s era. I never wanted to compare myself to him, and I know he loved me. I choose to hold on to all the beautiful moments we shared.”
Maradona coached Messi at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, arguably Messi’s worst performance at the ultimate tournament in his career.
Nonetheless, Messi has always shown deference to Maradona for paving the way for players like him while also playing a crucial mentor role to him until Maradona passed away in 2020.
Maradona never got to watch Messi and Argentina return to the summit of world football in 2022, and he won’t be here to watch them in the 2026 World Cup final with a chance at making history either.
The spirit of his national team brilliance lives on with Messi, who is leading the World Cup Golden Boot race with eight goals in the competition while also dishing out four assists so far in the tournament.
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