It will soon be one year since Argentina’s title in the 2022 Qatar World Cup. A tournament in which the captain of the Albiceleste team, Lionel Messi, shone like never before, being key and scoring seven goals in the same number of games of the World Cup.
Not counting the electrifying final between Argentina and France that ended 3-3 in regulation time, and had to be decided on penalties, the match against the Netherlands was the most spicy and exciting for the Argentines.
The clash took place in the quarterfinals and also had to go to penalties after a 2-2 that the Europeans managed to equalize in the last minutes of the game. But beyond the result, before the match there were many provocative statements from the Dutch, especially from their coach Louis Van Gaal.
These statements did not go down well with the Albiceleste team and it was noticeable how the Argentines wanted to respond on the field. Even their captain Lionel Messi, who after scoring the partial 0-2 from the penalty spot, had a particular celebration. Which caused a lot of controversy.
Origin of the “Topo Gigio” celebration that Messi replied against the Netherlands
This celebration was not by chance nor is it isolated, it has a great background, and it all started in 2001 when former Argentine player Juan Román Riquelme used it for the first time in a Copa Libertadores match against Santa Fe when he played for Boca Juniors.
This gesture of putting his hands to his ears accompanied him throughout his career. Even during his time at FC Barcelona, it was a complicated stage in Riquelme’s career, as he had friction with Van Gaal (Barcelona coach at that time). The Dutchman himself explained that Riquelme was not a player he liked and that is why he had him on the bench.
It is because of this story that Messi decided to pay tribute to his compatriot and celebrate before Van Gaal as Riquelme did. To remind him of the quality of the Argentine players, which he despised on several occasions.
Messi’s regret after the celebration
However, he recently appeared in the Star+ miniseries “Champions.” Which celebrates the first anniversary of the third Argentine star. Messi revealed that after celebrating “Topo Gigio” he regretted doing so.
“I automatically regretted it. I barely did it. I said ‘what a jerk, what I have to do.'” Leo emphasized. “What’s more, I thought ‘the only thing missing now is for them to tie the game, for us not to win’, because those things usually happen.”
Furthermore, captain Albiceleste explained why he was motivated to celebrate like this. “It bothers me when people talk off the field and disrespect their rivals. I was never like that. A million things can happen on the field and it stays there. Before the game, I never did that, wanting to heat him up and disrespect him, and I don’t like it when they do it to me. I think Van Gaal did it a bit on purpose, the goalkeeper had also spoken. “I don’t like those things,” explained the “10” of the Argentine team.
The match ended in victory for Argentina, however Messi came out a little angry. And in the hallways of the stadium in the midst of an interview with the media, the famous “what are you looking at, stupid?” that he said to a Dutch player.
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