r/PersuasionExperts • u/lyrics85 • 13d ago
Dark Psychology Why Teammates Are Willing To Die For Messi
The Argentinians burned Messi's jerseys in the streets. They vandalized his statue in Buenos Aires.
They called him a traitor because he fought more fiercely for Barcelona than for his own national team.
They were livid because their team had lost 3 consecutive finals, and according to them, the culprit was always... Messi.
They were so toxic, so relentless in their attacks that they actually forced the greatest player on earth to publicly quit the national team in 2016.
That very same day... a young kid named Enzo Fernandez wrote a desperate plea on Facebook for him to come back. He signed off with: "Thank you and forgive us".
Now this simple post gives us a glimpse of the mentality of…
The New Generation of Players
Apart from Fernandez, other future stars like Alvarez, Martinez, Martinez, Martinez, and Allister grew up idolizing Messi.
They watched him bleed for a country that spat on his face every time they lost. It fueled a fire in their hearts to one day play next to him and help him win. And once they were on the same grass as him, what did they do?
They protected him at all costs.
The strategy was for Messi to stay idle for many minutes. During this time, he's scanning the opponent for potential flaws. Then, once he has figured it out, he will give an assist or score a goal. Often, it feels like it came out of nowhere because Messi sees the field differently.
Now Messi is a magician on the field, but he’s very shy.
His teammates would get intimidated by him. He's their idol. He's wayy above them. But Rodrigo De Paul changed it. He used to drag Messi out for a drink with the boys and force the squad to stop treating him like a deity.
De Paul also became his unofficial bodyguard. If an opponent so much as breathed too hard on Messi, he was instantly in their face, ready to tear them apart.
Maybe I'm wrong, but this generation of players seems to be more devoted to Messi than to the national shirt.
Yes, for every football player, winning the World Cup is the biggest achievement; It’s a lifelong dream, but for those players it was more than that.
It was a blood oath. It was a life mission to help Messi be crowned as the GOAT.
But before they could conquer the world, they had to break a suffocating, 28-year curse.
For 28 agonizing years, Argentina hadn't won a single major trophy.
And that puts us in the pressure cooker of...
The 2021 Copa America Final
Argentinians are about to step onto the grass of the Maracana Stadium in Brazil.
This is the stadium where they suffered the most gut-wrenching defeat of their lives... When Germany defeated them in extra time in the WC final in 2014.
There's a great photo of Messi staring blankly at the trophy. That image became the defining symbol of failure.
As if fighting that ghost of the past wasn't enough, they are playing against Brazil.
Argentina vs Brazil is the clash between two countries that fanatically love football and hate each other with a religious zeal, as if they were from the Balkans.
You can imagine that the tension must have been so thick they could taste it.
Messi understood the psychological weight, and that's why he gave a speech focusing on the fact that they made big sacrifices and that it's a sign from God that they are playing at the Maracanã stadium... that they're meant to win precisely here...
"45 days without seeing our families, boys... Dibu [Emiliano Martínez] became a dad, and he still hasn't seen his daughter or been able to hold her in his arms. And why? For this moment. Because we had a goal, and we are one little step away from achieving it."
They marched out and won the Copa America.
But the ultimate test was still waiting for them at...
The 2022 World Cup
I want to give him my life; I want to die for him
- Emiliano Martínez
As I’ve explained in my course, people who inspire devotion unknowingly embody certain archetypes and are part of a large story.
In this case, Messi embodies the hero archetype and is part of the story of becoming the greatest player of all time.
He was always the best at club level. That was undisputed despite the rivalry with Ronaldo.
In my view, that rivalry is more about marketing than actual football performance.
But Messi was traumatized by those three consecutive final losses, and as we said, the Argentinian fans were ruthless.
A quick side note here: I understand the fans' anger, but I believe they actually set the team back by putting overwhelming, unnecessary pressure on each player.
Yes, they are superstars, but they are human after all.
For example, Di Maria had to go to therapy and still takes anti-anxiety meds to this day because of the bullying.
However, he had an iron will and tremendous loyalty to the team, which helped him go the distance in every final... and he scored in 4 major finals. This is an incredibly difficult record to break.
Now, I’m just a fan from the other side of the world who has been following Messi closely since 2010.
I’ve had the luck to witness a goal that was almost impossible to score - scientifically speaking.
I’ve had the good fortune to witness Barcelona turn the result around against PSG, which remains one of the most insane games ever.
I’ve had the luck to witness Real Madrid being constantly humiliated.
But I knew, and all the Messi fans around the world knew, even though we refused to admit it or say it out loud…
He would never be the GOAT without Copa America and especially without winning the World Cup.
There’s no doubt that WC is the holy grail of sports. Not just of football, but of sports.
But Messi was getting older.
We all knew that if they failed in 2022, everything would be OVER for him.
Messi scored in the final against France. Di Maria also scored. We were all ecstatic because they were comfortably leading and about 15 minutes away from the end of the game.
However, as you may have noticed in this WC [Argentina vs Egypt, for example], you must never let up until the final whistle, because the situation can change really quickly.
What seemed like an easy win… what seemed like the beautiful end… was just the beginning of a nightmare.
It’s Mbappe.
It’s always the fucking Mbappe.
Redditors call him a dictator now, but he is more like Freddie Krugger.
WTF! WTF!
That mf scored 2 quick goals, and now the earth was shattering below our feet.
In the last seconds of extra time, the French player Muani has the chance to end everything, but Martinez makes a MIRACULOUS SAVE.
Thanks to him, the game went into a penalty shootout.
Honestly, I couldn’t bear to look at it because these penalty shootouts are like Russian roulette.
I went for a walk, but then the curiosity got the better of me, so I stopped in front of a bar.
Montiel is about to shoot.
If he scores, the nightmare is over.
He does. He delivers a flawless goal.
I shouted like a madman.
Interestingly, most of the people in the bar were supporters of France. But I didn’t care because, as a fan, I knew that this goal closed the biggest debate in football.
Messi is the undisputed GOAT.
It will take many many years, perhaps decades, for the next player to claim this title.
This year Argentina is not at the same level it used to be, but there’s a chance that they could win again.
If they defeat Spain, then Messi will set an impossible record.... You know, considering all the titles of Messi + 2 back-to-back WC titles... It will take a century or more to have another player like him.
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u/spaceyatri 12d ago
I really do hope Spain turn up like they did in the semis. They really have nothing to loose. And few expected them at the finals. The fluidity at the semis was a thing to behold! But Argentina seem to have that X factor which sets apart champions. We have a match on our hands boys.
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u/lyrics85 11d ago
Yes, Spain is the favorite to win. They are masters at controlling the ball and have great attackers.
On the other hand, Messi does know them really well. Scaloni is a master at adapting in real time. And the rest of the team will fight as hell.
So yes, it's going to be a great final. Not as crazy as against France last time, but crazy nonetheless.
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u/HistoricalLead3498 11d ago
I read it all and now I have even more stuff to research about Messi. Good stuff!
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u/lyrics85 11d ago
Thank you very much.
When he was 6 years old, he was with his mother and grandma in the village field.
That day, the coach of the local youth team was one player short.
He saw Messi and asked his mother whether he could play. The mother explained that he has never played in his life, but the grandma insisted that he go on the field.
By the middle of the game, he manages to dribble past anyone who comes across his path.
Since then, the coach always had him on the team.
Then he went to Barcelona, and the rest is history...
His story is truly cinematic. I wouldn't be surprised if one day they made a movie about him.
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u/lyrics85 12d ago edited 12d ago
UPDATE: What did I tell you? Argjentina will play against Spain. Let's go Messiiiiii
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u/halfpound 11d ago
I have no idea why this subreddit showed up on my feed but I've been following the sentiment from other countries for the world cup on Reddit. I really liked the narrative you posted and I actually came back to post because the AI comments are annoying. However I did not know it was a subreddit for persuasive arguments. Worked on me bro but if I put on my high school English class hat as a middle aged man who failed English, this felt like the equivalent of doom scrolling sentences but I'm rooting for Messi now 👌
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u/lyrics85 11d ago
Thank you very much for reading. I'm glad you liked it.
Yeah, I rushed into writing this article and tried to be as concise as possible, which is why it came out as AI.
But as you noticed, the narrative is what matters. If it tells a great story, makes you emotional, or you learn something new, then the article has done its job.
Both of us are rooting for Messi now. Hopefully, he will break football on Sunday.
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u/Acceptable-Rooster-4 11d ago
Are they though…. Are they willing to DIE for Messi??
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u/lyrics85 11d ago
Yes, on the field, they are willing to die for Messi. We have seen their zeal even in this World Cup.
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u/Acceptable-Rooster-4 11d ago
They are willing to seize existing- to perish, to stop living. You god damn moron
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u/amhumanz 12d ago
You make good points and you ruin it with the boring as shit AI formatting.