Messi and Scaloni got the most they could out of this Argentina team - ESPN

«Thanks Scaloneta,» said the headline in Argentina's Pagina 12 newspaper shortly after Sunday's World Cup final, using the nickname for the team coached by Lionel Scaloni.

«What remains are the joys, the memories, and, now, the lamentations,» the story read. «The national team ended five years of total domination with a bad game, keeping in contention thanks to the saves of Dibu Martínez. Spain are worthy champions.»

Lionel Messi might well have been expecting the 1-0 defeat to Spain. «No matter what happens, this group has written a history that we will never forget,» he said Saturday.

It felt like the declaration of a boxer well aware that he was about to face a superior opponent. And though it took Spain a long time to land the knockout blow, if it had been a boxing match La Roja would have built up an unassailable lead on points.

— Spain's persistence pays off as Messi, Argentina exit quietly
— Ratings: Messi 3/10 as Spain beat Argentina in World Cup final
— VAR review: Why Enzo Fernández's red card was deserved

True, Spain had enjoyed an extra day of rest. And injuries to Argentina players robbed Scaloni of the chance to use some of his attacking options. But after the final whistle, as a heartbroken Messi gazed at the massed ranks of Argentina supporters, the coach might well have been reflecting on the size of the gap between the two teams, and on the way that Argentina's idea of play was so completely bettered by that of Spain.

There is a delicious irony at the heart of the 2026 World Cup. The tournament appeared set up to venerate the concept of celebrity — both the big-name players on the pitch, and the stars of other fields of human endeavor in the stands. And yet the trophy ended up in the hands of a team