By late Wednesday afternoon, the roads in Barcelona had begun to empty as the anticipation for the Argentina-England semifinal grew. I was an hour away from my intended viewing spot, anxiously watching the dashboard clock, fearing I might miss the start and concerned it might be Lionel Messi’s final beginning.
In Atlanta, under the closed roof shielding against Georgia’s heat, Messi took his time on the indoor, air-conditioned field. The match started off fiercely with churning legs, desperate tugs, and lunging tackles, the ball repeatedly disappearing amid England’s younger players’ aggressive pursuit. Amidst all this vigorous activity, Messi was walking.
At 39 years old, Messi is one of the oldest players in the tournament. He doesn’t sprint as often these days nor does he cover as much ground. Sunday’s match is likely his last in the World Cup. In previous tournaments, Argentina questioned his genius and blamed him for failures. However, Messi has undoubtedly revolutionized soccer, not only by transforming what a player could do with the ball but by altering how a player anticipates the play before receiving the ball. He made patience a form of attack.
A soccer match runs on more than one clock. There’s the official one, bright and relentless, and there’s a quieter time where fatigue sets in for defenders, midfielders lose their pace, and passing lanes stay open longer than they should. Messi moves slowly enough to perceive this second clock: observing who follows him, who ceases to follow, and where the next opening will appear. The visible match belongs to everyone else; Messi immerses himself in the one hidden beneath the surface.
Messi doesn’t walk because he has left the game. He walks to engage with it. He demonstrated this at 29, and at 19 as well.
The early myth of Messi revolved around his speed: his low center of gravity, the ball seemingly glued to his feet, his sudden navigation through spaces that only revealed themselves upon his arrival. Yet, even then, his profound talent was not merely in outrunning the game but in understanding it faster than anyone else.