It’s been a consensus cup. The world has prayed for Messi to win this one to match his laurels. Argentina, now you can cry tears of joy. The trickle on the cheeks is adorable.

But Messi isn’t just Argentina. Messie is dignity personified. Hence a Messie cup. It’s hard to imagine if, at heart, even France wasn’t rooting for the little giant.

After all, Mbappe already has a trophy. And when Mbappe walked out of his somnambulism, his genius threatened Messi’s life’s worth. I wouldn’t say I liked every goal that Mbappe scored. My emotions flowed in Messi’s veins. How do you reconcile a hat trick that ended up losing against the wish you wanted to be granted?

It’s hard to be Mbappe tonight.

But it’s great to be Messi tonight.

In due time, given enough separation, Mbappe will salute this defeat as his greatest triumph.

The world is a better place tonight.

Messi belongs to the ages.

Mbappe has ages ahead of him.

– Brij