Golden Ball winner Messi: ‘It means nothing’

David Cooper - Writer 06:16 15/07/2014
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  • Empty gesture: A dejected Lionel Messi shakes hands with Golden Glove winner Manuel Neuer of Germany as he collects the Golden Ball.

    Lionel Messi says his Golden Ball triumph offered no consolation whatsoever following the heart­break of Argentina’s World Cup final loss to Germany.

    The Barcelona star cut a dis­consolate figure as he collected his prize for being the finals’ best player in the immediate aftermath of the 1-0 defeat in Rio.

    La Albiceleste enjoyed the bet­ter chances but paid a heavy price for not taking them as Mario Gotze struck the game’s only goal deep into extra time.

    Messi himself was guilty of squandering a glorious opportunity when through one-on-one with Manuel Neuer just after half-time.

    Gonzalo Higuain and Rodrigo Palacio were also culpable and now Messi says he and all Argentines must try and move on.

    “In these moments, the prize (the Golden Ball) doesn’t interest me at all,” he said. “We wanted to take home the trophy and enjoy it with all the people in Argentina.

    “We deserved a bit more after the match we played. It’s very painful to lose in the manner that we did because we were so close to penal­ties. I think that in this World Cup we deserved a different result because we had the chances.

    “We got to the final and it’s a long time since Argentina got past the semi-finals. Now we carry with us the disappointment of not being able to win the match.

    “They had more of the ball, but we had the better chances. I think that at the end we didn’t get the luck that we needed. The chances we created were clear.

    “We had three clear ones – mine, the one of Higuain and Rodrigo, but we could not finish them. Now we have to move on.”

    Messi’s selection as the tourna­ment’s pre-eminent performer sparked huge debate given that he failed to score in the knockout rounds, having previously netted four times in the group stage.

    While in the past the decision was reached by a media vote, this year it was made by FIFA’s Techni­cal Committee for the first time.

    That led to claims he was selected for commercial reasons – a view even supported by his compa­triot and Argentine legend Diego Maradona.

    “I would give heaven and earth to Leo, but when marketing peo­ple want him to win something he didn’t (deserve to) win, it is unfair,” said Maradona, the winner of the Golden Ball when Argentina won the World Cup in 1986. “I could see that he didn’t want to go up and col­lect it.”

    Speaking on the final edition of his World Cup television pro­gramme De Zurda, Maradona said Colombia’s James Rodriguez, who won the Golden Boot as the top scorer in the tournament, was his choice for the Golden Ball.

    Germany have now beaten Argentina in each of the last three World Cups, thrashing a side coached by Maradona 4-0 in 2010.But on this occasion, the former Argentina captain said there was little to choose between the teams.

    “We raised our flag high, there’s no doubt,” he said. “Germany won due to a misunderstanding in the defence but at no point were they better than us. They showed us a lot of respect, and our lads earned that out on the pitch.”

    Meanwhile, Messi’s national team boss Alejandro Sabella, per­haps unsurprisingly, felt his star forward deserved his accolade from FIFA.

    “He deserves it because he played an extraordinary World Cup,” said Sabella. “He was a fundamental factor in the team making it to the final, along with everything done by his other team-mates.

    “The World Cup is a highly demanding tournament and as for his reputation, he is in that pan­theon among the greats. But he was there before – he has been there for quite some time.”

    But like Messi, Sabella admitted that his side had paid the price for missed chances

    He added: “The players are bit­ter and sad because we had a huge dream having made it all the way to the final. We needed to be more clinical and I am sad just like the players. 

    "Beyond the pain of the defeat in the final they can look themselves in the eyes and say they gave everything for Argentina.

    “We have an extraordinary group of players, these were warriors. I congratulated the players because they left every drop of sweat out on the field. They gave their all.

    “I think that this was a very tough match, Germany started better and handled the ball well and is a great team. The match had its up and downs but we had the clearer chances. I congratulate my players for their extraordinary work.”

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