FOOTBALL fans in South Trinidad were shouting "Messi! Messi! Messi!" on Sunday after Lionel Messi led Argentina to a nail-biting 4-2 victory on penalties, to win the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar.
Argentina previously won the World Cup in 1978 and 1986.
Hundreds of football fans jammed the courtyard on the upper level of the C3 Shopping Centre in Corinth where a large-screen TV had been set up for them to watch the final.
The nearby Rango Restaurant and 519 and Buzz sports bars were also crammed with Argentine and French supporters, many of them wearing the regular and alternate strips of their respective teams.
Throughout the 120 minutes of the final, which was finally decided by a penalty shootout, there was a lively and friendly banter between the Argentine and French fans.
[caption id="attachment_991624" align="alignnone" width="1024"] [page 9] Argentina and France fans celebrate together at the courtyard of the C3 Shopping Centre in San Fernando during the World Cup final between the two teams on Sunday. - ROGER JACOB[/caption]For the first half of the game, Argentine fans were in their glee after Argentina took the lead when Messi slotted a penalty past French captain Hugo Lloris in the 23rd minute and then started an attack which eventually lead to winger Angel Di Maria shooting past Lloris to seemingly put Argentina in the driver's seat.
"Is Messi time now! He is the goat!" an Argentine fan said to three French fans as they watched the big screen gloomily.
The mood swung in favour of the French fans in the second half when France was awarded a penalty, which French forward Kylian Mbappe calmly dispatched from the spot in the 80th minute.
"We coming back! We coming back!" one French fan shouted.
There were more celebrations for French fans when Mbappe equalised for France two minutes later.
[caption id="attachment_991623" align="alignnone" width="1024"] A fan of the French football team at C3 Shopping Centre in San Fernando hopes for France to take the lead during a penalty shootout against Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday. - ROGER JACOB[/caption]
From that point on, it was a game of nerves between Argentine and French fans, each of them making their voices heard every time Argentina or France came close to breaking the 2-2 deadlock in regulation time.
There were groans of disgust from both sets of fans when the wi-fi signal to the large tv was lost during the first half of extra-time, forcing many to head inside 519 and Buzz to watch the match.
Shouts of "Messi! Messi! Messi!" echoed throughout the courtyard when Messi pounced on a loose ball to regain the lead for Argentina in the 108th minute. "Bring the puncheon (rum)!" one Argentine fan shouted, believing victory was imminent.
The shouts turned to "Mbappe! Mbappe!" as he brought the French back on level terms in the 118 minute, leaving the game to be decided on penalties. "Don't write us off! It not over yet!" a French fan shouted.
[caption id="attachment_991625" align="alignnone" width="683"] [Page 9] Gleeful A
