Lionel Messi was not there, Emiliano Martinez was. Yet Messi dominated the discourse on a Tuesday afternoon reserved for Martinez, who was only too happy to play along. As one of Messi’s most trusted lieutenants during Argentina’s triumphant campaign in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Martinez didn’t mind the interest and curiosity about his iconic teammate’s future in the sport and decided on the second day of his career with the to go with the flow. visit to the football mad city. Earlier, there were scenes of unbridled joy on the roads leading to the Mohun Bagan tent where the star goalkeeper engaged in a slew of activities including inaugurating the Pele-Maradona-Sobers gate and opening the Kolkata Police Friendship Cup for packed grandstands.
‘Dibu’, as he is affectionately known, was overwhelmed by the welcome he received from thousands of fans wearing the Albiceleste colors and Messi’s number 10 jersey.
“It’s a joy to see so many people cheering for you and Argentina,” he said.
With cheers of ‘Messi, Messi’ echoing in the stands, 30-year-old Martinez made a pledge to bring Messi back to Kolkata and play football in the Argentine colours.
“This is not the end, I hope to come back to India to play with Argentina and Messi,” he said, generating loud cheers.
“Coming to places like this now makes me realize how important it is to win the World Cup. Making people happy.
“I said I would come to Kolkata to see the culture, the beautiful city of Kolkata. I am really proud to be here today,” he said.
The Golden Glove winner of the 2022 FIFA World Cup thanked Messi for making him a “better goalkeeper”.
When asked if he has ever stopped a Messi penalty, he replied: “Yes, I have in friendlies.” “We used to practice a lot before the World Cup. We had to be ready for the penalty shootout. So there is no better way to prepare than to stop Messi.”
“That’s how I became a better goalkeeper. By denying a penalty from Messi, I knew I could stop anyone.” “It’s a mental game… I practice a lot. And we also practiced a lot of penalties for the World Cup final, knowing that something like that can play a role.” The Aston Villa goalkeeper said he aims to win more titles with Argentina.
“From a young age I had a dream to become Argentina’s number one goalkeeper. I’m not going to relax now, I want to get better and win many, many tournaments for Argentina.” When the discussion turned to Indian football, Martinez said the key is to hire European coaches and develop the youngsters.
“The first thing to do is get European coaches, the best coaches who can teach the kids and bring European style of football – how to move on the pitch.
“I also bring European techniques to Argentine goalkeepers to make sure they get better from a very young age.
“By doing that from a young age, hopefully India would play the World Cup.”
Messi is the greatest
Earlier in the day, he was congratulated by clubs from Mohun Bagan and East Bengal on the sidelines of a ‘Tahader Katha’ talk show at Milan’s Mela ground where he declared “Messi is the best”.
“Messi is the best player ever and there will be no Messi in the future. It’s hard to match him. He’s the best player.”
“We had to win the World Cup for him and we succeeded.” Messi had made it clear that the World Cup in Qatar was his last and that he had no intention of donning the Argentina jersey in 2026.
“Don’t worry,” Martinez said, adding that they are a team of “tigers” and would take on the challenge again.
“I take challenges with all my heart and passion. We have a group of tigers in the team and we are ready to fight,” he said.
Sea of white and blue
The Maidan was a sea of white and blue with Argentinian fans wearing the jersey heading towards the Mohun Bagan ground.
The posters of Martinez kissing his golden glove and the glittering FIFA World Cup trophy littered the Gostha Pal Sarani leading up to the Mohun Bagan tent.
The craze outside the gate of Mohun Bagan was so great that not an inch of space was left.
Fans were seen standing on the edges of an open drain, or perched precariously on the bluffs of the stadium gallery to catch a glimpse of Martinez.
The Argentine icon arrived an hour late and first inaugurated the Pele-Maradona-Sobers gate by cutting the usual ribbon.
He went straight to Mohun Bagan’s tent office, where the club officials showed him around the facility. It was followed by a customary photo op with the club members outside the club lawn.
The club also selected some school children whose “dreams came true”.
“It was a dream come true for us. We are big fans of his goalkeeping work and took selfies and autographs,” said Prachet Singh Chauhan, who was accompanied by Akshat Gupta, Aravan Bajpayee and Karan Chawla.
He later went to the ground and waved the Indian flag in a new gesture. He then got into an open vehicle, circled the ground and kicked footballs at the fans in the galleries.
(This story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Topics mentioned in this article
