Long before Argentina had kicked a ball in Brazil, the World Cup was billed as Lionel Messi’s date with destiny.
For all his mesmeric brilliance in La Liga, resplendent array of medals and individual accolades, it is at the World Cup where true footballing greatness is enshrined.
From Pele to Messi’s Argentine forebear Diego Maradona, to Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo, they all made their mark on the grandest stage and took their place in the realm of all-time greats.
So far, you’d struggle to argue this has been Messi’s tournament.
He is rightly in the frame for the Golden Ball, but there are many names on FIFA’s shortlist who are more deserving – one a team-mate in Javier Mascherano – and several in the German side whose downfall he will attempt to orchestrate tonight.
The fact that many feel underwhelmed by Messi’s contribution is a measure of his genius – as four goals and as many man of the match awards is hardly modest.
A virtuoso strike got Argentina underway against Bosnia-Herzegovina, while another Messi goal made the difference against Iran and a sublime brace was too good for Nigeria.
Yet as the quality of opponents and their tactical plans to smother him have improved in the knockout stages, he has found it far harder to throw off the shackles.
That said, he has still influenced games.
The Swiss swarmed all over him in the last 16, but it was Messi who provided the assist for Angel Di Maria to settle the outcome deep into extra time.
Next it was Belgium and once again Messi found himself surrounded, outnumbered, starved of room to play, yet he still managed to sliver away from a posse of opponents and instigate the move that resulted in Gonzalo Higuain’s winner.
The Netherlands were even more effective as his bodyguard for the night Nigel de Jong and latterly Jordy Clasie ensured that Messi toiled through 120 minutes without a single touch of the ball inside the Dutch penalty area.
But when it came to the shootout, there was never any doubt he would succeed. Messi’s fingerprints are all over Argentina’s march to the final but his grip has never fully clasped the tournament, as Maradona’s did in 1986, Ronaldo’s in 2002 or Zidane’s in 2006.
But if it hasn’t entirely been Messi’s World Cup, it can still be Messi’s World Cup final – and in the narrative spawned by the tournament, the Barcelona star can still have his perfect ending, indeed, his date with destiny.
The Argentines are cast in the role of slight underdogs against a ruthless German collective who have built momentum and you get the feeling only Messi’s magic can stop them crystalising their status as the World Cup’s oustanding team by lifting the trophy.
There is also the crushing pressure of the final itself.
There hasn’t been a truly fitting showpiece conclusion since 1986, with the magnitude of the match often suffocating.
You can forget Germany’s rout of Brazil, this is likely to be a much tighter affair, settled by small details or one moment of individual magnificence.
It could yet be Messi’s time.
