The 2022 FIFA World Cup had the storybook ending that virtually the entire world had desired.
Lionel Messi fulfilled his destiny and bridged a 36-year gap between Argentina’s second and third World Cup triumphs. The sight of the Rosario-born superstar hoisted onto the shoulders of his countrymen as he raised the World Cup trophy aloft is an image that will be seen for decades to come.
The little man became a legend and cemented his place alongside Diego Maradona in the pantheon of La Albiceleste’s greatest heroes.
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Such things rarely play out so well in life let alone sport. For every Brian O’Driscoll Aviva Stadium send-off, there are countless more infamous departures like Ronan O’Gara’s Murrayfield meltdown.
We can talk about narrative all we want, but far too often, the hero does not get to ride off into the sunset with their heads held high.
This past month has emphasised that point perfectly. While Messi was paraded as a God in the streets of Buenos Aires, Cristiano Ronaldo was training alone in Madrid. While he may be working out at Real, he’s likely to be plying his trade in far less illustrious company in the coming years.
Both Messi and Ronaldo were the two faces of their generation. For well over a decade, the pair were engaged in a game of one-upmanship. Both were driven on by whatever the other was doing and it took both of them to levels the game had never seen before. What we saw from the two of them during their time in Spain may never be seen again.
Up until a month ago, an argument could have been made that Ronaldo may have the edge over Messi. But even the most ardent Ronaldo fan would now struggle to argue the case.
That Portugal were dumped out of the quarter-final by Morocco is only the tip of the iceberg. Even before that, Ronaldo had already faced the ignominy of being dropped by manager Fernando Santos for the last 16 tie with Switzerland.
His replacement, 21-year-old Goncalo Ramos, smashed in a hat-trick as Ronaldo sat on the bench. At 37, Ronaldo will never play a World Cup game again, and if rumours of a move to Saudi Arabia are to be believed, he may never feature in a game of this magnitude ever again.
Ronaldo is not the only one to have tasted bitter defeat this World Cup. Take Gareth Bale as an example. After 64 years of hurt, Wales finally made it back to the big time. In the first game, Bale rifled home a vital late penalty to salvage a draw against the USA.
For the next game and a half, Bale was anonymous against Iran and was hooked at halftime in the 3-0 loss to England. After over a decade of being the main man, Bale was subbed for Brennan Johnson in one of the biggest Welsh matches of all time. And while Johnson didn’t score a hat trick, Bale surely must have felt just as sore as Ronaldo.
Luis Suarez’s top-level career ended as it began against Ghana. Suarez made himself a household name for all the wrong reasons in 2010 when his handball denied Ghana a place in the semi-finals. Since then, Ghana has labelled Suarez ‘El Diablo’ - The Devil himself.
Undeterred, the Uruguayan rolled back the years and was exceptional as the South American side dumped the Black Stars out at the group stage. Yet the enduring image of Suarez at this World Cup is of him in tears on the bench, sobbing as he realised a South Korean goal against Portugal had ended his World Cup career.
In that same game, Edinson Cavani’s World Cup career came to an end. Days later, it Was Robert Lewandowski’s turn to bow out on the world stage. The Polish striker will be two months short of his 38th birthday when the 2026 World Cup begins in North America/Mexico. Who knows if he will make it that far, but at least he got two World Cup goals that his fabulous career richly deserved.
Karim Benzema called time on his International career without even getting to feature in this World Cup. His replacement, Olivier Giroud, bagged four goals in his stead. But even though the former Chelsea and Arsenal striker had a wonderful tournament, the final World Cup memory of the 36-year-old will be of him being dragged off by Didier Deschamps before halftime in the final.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom for the golden oldies at this tournament though. Messi was exceptional, and even at 35 years of age, he is still by far the best player in the world not named Kylian Mbappe.
Even fellow veteran Angel Di Maria recovered from a ropey start in the tournament to crown his own career with a World Cup final goal. A man built for the biggest occasions, maybe now he has finally reversed the damage inflicted by his ill-fated spell at Manchester United.
As with all World Cups, new stars of the game are born while others fade away. Luka Modric falls into neither category, and at 37 years young, he is still one of the best midfielders on the planet.
But for the most part, this World Cup signals the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. The stars of the 2010s have played in their final tournament. Come 2026, they will either be too old to play or, sadly, shouldn’t be playing. But this tournament was the last dance for many of these stars that my generation grew up with.
In four years time, a whole new cast of heroes and villains will be in place, and a new story will be written.
Just don't expect a perfect ending.
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