It turned and stopped at Argentina. That’s the way the World Cup turned on last Sunday, December 18.

It was a desert storm in Qatar that kept 3 billion people around the world on their feet or on the edge of their seats for an incredible, sustained, and nerve-racking two hours.

It was a drama that seemed to have no end, as scene after scene followed each other in the style of that favourite soap opera, As the world turns.

Imagine, Argentina had their way with two goals in the bag when suddenly, 30 minutes into the second half, France unleashed Kylian Mbappe and the game was never the same again.

Onlookers were taken for a wild ride of see-saws from one side to the other with questions asked and unanswered right down to the final chapter.

For those who love their soap operas they got everything — drama, cut-throat, dismissals, tears, anguish, smiles, triumphs, and a ball that showed no allegiance to either side, but moved like an unfaithful husband racing from love nest to love nest between the lines.

This 2022 World Cup final has gone down as the greatest and most sensational match of all kinds and all times. It beats “the hand of God” of 2008, the USA upset of England in 1950, the West Germany vs Netherlands thriller of 1974, Pele’s last match in 1970, the emergence of the Brazilian Ronaldo on the World Cup stage in 1994, and the still unbelievable and unforgivable wipeout of Brazil in 2014.

The 10:00 am timing was perfect for many church-goers, as it gave the opportunity to watch either half or tune in silently in the back pew. And even pastors cocked their ears during sermons to exchange a note or a whispered hallelujah with the deacon on watch, whose job it was to pass on the score.

Those who missed this epic will ruefully recall William Shakespeare’s Henry V‘s chastisement of his soldiers who hid from the Battle of Agincourt fought between our still two modern-day rivals, England and France”

“And gentlemen in England now a-bed

Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.”

There was one element prevalent in the run-ups to the match that was evident — pardon if I wax poetic — and that is, destiny.

The French coach Didier Deschamps gave it away on Saturday when he said he knew that most neutral fans wanted Argentina to win the final to give Messi “the perfect send-off from football’s biggest tournament”.

In fact, he even believed that some people in France wished the same. And, in a preview of the World Cup published in this newspaper on November 21, 2022 I said, “But watch what happens when Lionel Messi takes the field for his final match against his rivals. As one fan puts it, what an end it would be to a dazzling international career for Messi if he takes home the gold. I am sure few would begrudge the Argentinian such a farewell.”

I was led to think this by friends who challenged my assertion that Messi would prove to be the greatest. In response, they would raise the ghost of Maradona and his 1986 lifting of the World Cup.

In 2014 and again in 2018 Argentinians marked him out for not bringing home any major trophy to Argentina and, worse, playing all his record-breaking matches away from home. In this World Cup he started off warily with a backslide and a startling loss against Saudi Arabia. Millions wept as the demise of Argentina and Messi was written in the skies above Buenos Aires and Qatar.

Many back home rolled their fist in their eyes in the traditional ‘tump you down’ warning to the master that some big licks were awaiting him back home.

But the world fell in love with him again as we watched how he weaved his magic across the field to chain his rivals spellbound in the quarter-finals and in the semi-final.

Suddenly the headlines were ‘Messi Magic’ and the French fans fell silent.

On Sunday, Argentina came out and stamped their authority on the game. The 11 followed instructions, including a clear directive to control Mbappe, which they did until he came out like a rushing wind to score a historic hat-trick and claim the Golden Boot title over Messi. Now he is no longer the pretender to the throne, he is the successor to Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, and Pele all wrapped up in one.

Like good soap opera fans, we gasped at breaking news on the field, gazed in disbelief at the changing fortunes so rapidly unfolding, stunned by the rapid pace of the game, and thrilled to the exquisite passes and breakouts that kept the game flowing for some 145 minutes without let-up.

Argentina would be aware of the stories that flooded the online platforms recently describing their alleged skin colour discrimination policies, which to many observers have kept black people out of their football teams. This turned many Jamaican fans away from Argentina’s side, and it certainly added to the list of intrigue and behind-the-door whispering that make a good soap opera love story.

But the truth is that, in this world of realism, Argentina is not the only football power that has messed with colour and racial suppression.

France has put theirs behind them with the inclusion of a host of black players, none greater than the greatest to be, the young Mbappe. One thing we have come to live with is that the Argentinians look like footballers and play the ball without reckoning who is black or white.

The World Cup turned on Sunday and came to rest in Buenos Aires. Not even France will grudge it the honour done to Messi. They know their time will come when the prince comes into his own.

Lance Neita is a writer and communications strategist. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or lanceneita@hotmail.com.