The man before the footballer, between team and family. The Argentinean soul, dragging a people and his Seleccion, qualified to the last breath, for the 2018 World Cup, ready to go hunting for a cup only touched, in 2014, and constantly in the wish list of those who, by talent, look all from above. Lionel Messi knows: this summer could really represent the last good opportunity to bring his national team on the roof of the world, for an event really awaited by anyone. Maximum expectations, towards him, and the Argentine champion spoke about it in an exclusive interview granted to "La Cornisa", on America TV, also focusing on many curiosities related to his past and present:
"I've seen in every part of the world that people wish me to make a good tournament in the World Cup, that I win it and that Argentina becomes World Cup champions, it's impressive. I'll try to live it day after day, without getting though different steps too fast. My family and Barcelona allows me to live far away from these thoughts. Having sons makes everything less important: when my first child was born it made me start not to think too much about football. I obviously don't like to lose but I see it in another way now: there's something more important than the result. In the end it's only a game, football is full of surprises".
Periods with the Seleccion that for Messi also led to many criticisms, from which he particularly suffered in some situations: "I try to ignore them, but at times they hurt me too: some things out of place are said, especially from the point of view of private life and extra-sporting, even with Lavezzi: I'm the first to know when I play well and when I play badly, it's not only about the goals: there's the feeling of being in the field, taking part in the actions, playing well with the ball. At first I tried to make my move more often, now I try instead to make the team play more, not to be just an accomplice and "selfish", look for the best solution near the area. It's like before, but in a different way. It seems that having reached three finals in the last few years did not help: it all depends unfortunately on the results, and this leads us to think that if we are not champions we will not have another occasion. If I close my eyes I would like to imagine myself in the center of the field, in the final of the World Cup in Russia, raising the cup, the dream of all time: every time a World Cup is getting stronger, we would like to cry with joy, like everything the country. We know how difficult it is to win a World Cup, we noticed in 2014: we want to achieve a difficult dream, which we have only touched upon and it has been very hard. I hope it's a great World Cup for all of us, I hope to experience something similar to 2014, an unforgettable experience with such a close audience: we did everything well and for one detail we could not win ".
If the present is all about Barcelona, the future remains unknown, also talking about Argentina which isn't in its best position, on the security aspect: "I'm suffering for the moment that Argentina is living as a country, it's a shame: I think I'll be able to get back to Rosario in the future and try to live in my city as I never have when I was a child; I arrived in Barcelona when I was small but I don't regret it".
