This kind of reaction is only seen in the greatest people of all time.
Only the most famous legends could evoke such a big response.
The sellout crowd at MetLife Stadium celebrated in near unison on Tuesday night when Lionel Messi scored in the 51st minute to give Argentina a 2-0 win over Canada in the 2024 Copa America semifinals.
Argentina will face the winner of Wednesday’s match between Uruguay and Colombia in the other semifinal.
With the softest of touches, Messi deflected Enzo Fernandez’s shot past Canadian goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, giving the fans the religious experience they had been waiting for.
Limbs began to flap wildly across the stadium, and perhaps the greatest player in the history of the game became the object of worship.
It was Messi’s 109th goal for Argentina and 14th in the Copa Americas, but his first of this year’s tournament.
If this is the 37-year-old Messi’s final chapter in Argentina’s famous blue and white striped uniform, he will be one step away from the perfect ending.
As a staggering 80,102 fans – the vast majority of them Argentina fans – packed into MetLife Stadium, it was hard not to contrast it with the usual crowd at the venue.
When was the last time the Giants filled every seat in their stadium like this?
When was the last time the Jets got their fans excited?
Of course, Argentina, the reigning World Cup champions and the number one team in the world in the FIFA rankings, has Messi’s teammates in the mix, which makes them a big attraction.
Forward Julian Alvarez, who scored the opener in the 22nd minute on Tuesday night, is an up-and-coming player who steps up in key moments.
Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who kept a clean sheet on Tuesday, is one of the biggest fan personalities in football.
Forward Angel Di Maria is a team icon who has been a mainstay in the lineup for over a decade. The list goes on.
But Messi is the star. Messi is the star.
Chants of “Miiiii, Miiiii” echoed throughout the stadium as fans cheered for Messi every time he had the ball.
As Messi approached the sideline, the fan pretended to bow to him.
Rodrigo De Paul played a clever through ball from midfield to Alvarez, who slotted past Crepeau to give Argentina a 1-0 lead.
Canada nearly equalized with a shot from Jonathan David inside the six-yard box, but Martinez saved it.
Martinez kept the score at 2-0 in the 89th minute of the second half when he stopped a close-range shot from Tani Oluwaseyi.
Messi came close to scoring in the second half, in the 12th and 44th minutes, but both attempts went just wide of the goal.
Messi, who now plays club soccer for MLS club Inter Miami, has clearly accepted that he is in the final stages of his career.
It is unlikely that he will return to Argentina in 2026 when the World Cup is played partly in the United States.
Messi could end a long, unsuccessful international career on a winning note.
He lost in the 2014 World Cup final and the 2015 and 2016 Copa America finals.
He temporarily retired from the Argentina national team, the only thing missing from his career being a major international title.
But he later returned and restored the country to its former status.
And if this is his final appearance at international level, Messi will leave Argentina as leader with 90 minutes to go.
