Leandro Paredes who was the first person to interact with Lionel Messi on the field right after defender Gonzalo Montiel scored the decisive penalty in the shootout against France to win Argentina the World Cup, revealed what the Argentinian legend had said to him.
“That hug with Messi, I’ll keep with me for the rest of my life. Turning around, seeing him on his knees and being the first to hug him as a World Champion was incredible. I yelled at him ‘We are World champions’ and he just told us ‘Thank you, thank you, I love you,” he said in a interview with Sofi Martinez Mateos as per Goal.com.
On December 18, 2022, Messi scored two goals and then another in a shootout as Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties after a 3-3 draw to claim a third World Cup title despite Kylian Mbappé scoring the first hat trick in a final in 56 years.
A few days ago Argentina winger Angle Di Maria, who scored and provided an assist in the final, also shared how he used to perform his pre-match rituals ahead of all important games but did not do so before the finale.
“When I put on the shirt, I usually start praying. I have my Jesus there, my Virgin Mary, my cross, and on my phone, I have a photo of my wife and my daughters. I always light a candle but the final …,” Di Maria told journalist Sofi Martinez Mateos.
“The final was the only match in my career that I didn’t ask, I gave thanks for the moment I was going to live. While I was giving thanks, a few tears fell, and Leo (Messi) also spoke.
“It was not like at the Copa America, it was more direct … I wanted with my life to be able to win it, and thank God, it happened,” he added.
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