‘Diego is enjoying it immensely from there’: Lionel Messi’s emotional tribute to Diego Maradona after Argentina reach World Cup final

Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona (Image credit: Agencies) NEW DELHI: Emotions ran high as Argentina booked their place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals with a 2-1 win over England at the Atlanta Stadium in Atlanta on Wednesday. Lionel Messi did not add to his tournament-leading tally but the 39-year-old played a crucial role by assisting on both late goals as Argentina overcame a one-goal deficit to set up a title clash with Spain.Messi paid an emotional tribute to Argentine legend Diego Maradona after the win.Speaking to TyC Sports, Messi dedicated the victory to Maradona, who famously inspired Argentina to a memorable World Cup win over England 40 years ago.“Without a doubt, Diego is enjoying it immensely from there because today was a very special day for him; he could give him this joy and let him experience it up there the way he wants. Let him enjoy it because it’s a gift for him as well,” Messi said.The victory came exactly four decades after Maradona produced one of the greatest individual performances in World Cup history against England in the 1986 quarter-finals, scoring the famous “Hand of God” and “Goal of the Century”.Forty years later, Messi added another memorable chapter to the rivalry by setting up both goals in Argentina’s comeback win.Messi also spoke about the atmosphere before the match, saying that the emotions in the stadium were hard to control.“During the anthem, something strange happened because we started to hear the murmur of the crowd. People sang it in a strange way and we grabbed each other. Even though we knew it was a football match, sometimes it’s hard to control our emotions. That’s how we experienced it and that’s how we played,” Messi said.For years, Messi played in the shadow of Maradona, who led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup, including a memorable victory over England.Now Messi has created another historic moment of his own by inspiring Argentina to another World Cup final. Argentina will now face Spain in Sunday’s final as they aim to become the first nation since Brazil in 1962 to successfully defend their FIFA World Cup title.

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