Yesterday's New York Times Sunday magazine was devoted to the World Cup. In my opinion, the best article in that issue was about my favorite player, Lionel Messi, entitled, "The Burden of Being Messi." The author Jeff Himmelman captured the paradox of Messi - the best-loved footballer on the planet who cannot get any love in his home country of Argentina.
There are many reasons why Argentinians have never warmed up to Messi. These include: he left the country for Spain as a young boy; he has triumphed for his club Barca but has never won a major trophy for Argentina; that he is quiet and downright aloof compared to the country's first soccer god, Diego Maradona.
I hope Messi has a great tournament. I hope he scores lots of breathtaking goals. I hope he wins the Cup and silences all the doubters. Fundamentally, I hope he gets his country back. If not, both he and Argentina will be the losers.
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