Superstar Lionel Messi danced and sang with his teammates until early Sunday morning, after he led Argentina to a 2-0 victory over Mexico, to revive his dream of winning the first World Cup title.
Footage of the celebration in the dressing room showed Messi waving his arms in the air, while goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez danced on the table in the middle of the room, reflecting how important this tournament is to Argentina
and its captain in his fifth and final chance to lift the trophy.
Argentina has one of the most talented teams in the Qatar tournament, but he is under more pressure than others and is struggling to regain his outstanding performance that led him to remain unbeaten in 36 consecutive matches before the tournament.
Therefore, it was understandable that the team felt relieved after beating Mexico 2-0 and reviving its hopes of qualifying for the final price after the shocking defeat against Saudi Arabia in the opening match of Group C.
Although they actually struggled in the first half against a mediocre Mexican team, they celebrated as if they had won the World Cup itself.
Messi, 35, said, "It is a weight that has been removed from our shoulders," and this tournament now represents an opportunity to crown a busy career with clubs and the national team.
After scoring the first goal against Mexico, and his second of 3 goals for Argentina in the tournament, Messi rushed towards the screaming crowd, and assistant coach Pablo Aimar - who was
Messi's childhood idol - fought back his tears as he sat on the benches.
Coach Lionel Scaloni was happy when he saw his players enjoying the moment in the dressing room, but he realizes that the amount of expectations weighs on his players, even Messi seemed slow and made basic mistakes before scoring against Mexico.
Once the emotions subside, Scaloni will have to prepare for Poland's final match in the group stage, as only a win will guarantee them qualification for the knockout stages and bring the team one step closer to realizing Messi's dream.