| Host nation: Qatar Dates: 20 November-18 December Coverage: Live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app. Day-by-day TV listings - Full coverage details |
Lionel Messi's World Cup story is almost over but I know that things will be less enjoyable without him.
Whatever happens in the final, Messi's place in the hearts of football fans around the world will be solidified.
There was a beautiful moment after Argentina's win over Croatia in the semi-finals, where a reporter told Messi that he has made his mark on everyone's life, and that is more important than the result against France.
She was correct about everything. I don't make any apologies for how much I talk about Messi, because watching him has given me so much joy, and I will never change that.
We don't have a lot of time for him left, so let's savor every second.
In four of the six games he has played at the World Cup, Messi has been the man of the match.
It's not just his five goals or his three assists that have made him stand out at this tournament, it's the little things he does, like when he is trapped by three or four players, that makes him stand out.
I have said many times that he is the greatest player to have ever played the game because of his vision, his awareness, and his decision making.
Even though he plays as if he is watching the game from above, it doesn't do justice to his genius.
As soon as he gets the ball, the crowd can't take their eyes off him, and the whole stadium is holding its breath. He has always delivered when they stood up and waited for him.
There have been many jaw-dropping moments, like his brilliant dribble and precision pass to set up a goal against the Dutch, or the perfect first touch and strike to score against Mexico, which changed Argentina's fortunes in this tournament.
In the semi-finals, he turned Gvardiol inside out and left him completely bewildered.
You are left thinking 'WOW' and wondering how Messi can do that to one of the strongest and fastest defenders in the world, but even then he is still thinking about what comes next, and you are working out how he saw him.
Even if you only watched him at the tournament, you would know he is better than anyone else in the game.
We sometimes get caught up in goal scoring, which is great for me because it makes me look like a better player than I was.
I would be a better player than Diego Maradona if that was the criteria.
It's the same with the Messi versusRonald debate. Their numbers are similar, but I think Messi has the better one.
Neither of them can do the things Messi can when they score a goal.
Messi will beat four or five men in a tiny space and just pass it just five yards, or see a pass no one else does and deliver that with the perfect weight.
At this tournament, he has done all of that, just as he has done his entire career.
Some people thought he was struggling at Paris St-Germain, but that is not the case.
I love watching him play, and this season he has been brilliant, so he came into the World Cup in great shape.
He doesn't have the burst of speed he had in his prime, but he still has the raw talent that is hard to believe, and he has the determination that has kept him at the top for so long.
Messi is unique as a player in that he can drift away from the action and stand in areas where he doesn't get the ball for a while.
Is he evaluating everything that is happening and working out everyone's positions, or is he just taking a break?
During his time at Barcelona, he was more active in pressing the opposition than he is now.
It's clear Argentina have found a way to play that allows him to choose his moments in a tournament that is so concertinaed, and it reminds me of how they played when they won the 1986 World Cup.
The side was so tough and uncompromising with people such as Oscar Ruggeri and Jose Luis Brown at the back, and also had a great forward and extremely smart man, Jorge Valdano.
The Argentina side of 2022, without many genuine world-class players, is workmanlike, but they have a brilliant centre-forward thanks to the emergence of Alvarez.
Like Argentina did with Maradona before him, they can rely on some genius from Messi.
Everyone has a different opinion on who is the greatest player of all time, but I don't think you can really judge it from what you have seen.
Maradona is the only other candidate I can think of because I didn't see him play until I was nine and he was in the 1970 World Cup.
It's amazing that the two greatest players of all time are both from the same country, both left-footed, and both small, and they both dribble and do amazing things.
It is not easy to compare players from different generations because the game has changed so much.
I played with him for a Rest of the World team at Wembley as part of the Football League's 100th anniversary celebrations. He walked into our dressing room and everyone was in awe of him.
When we went out for our warm-up, Maradona got a ball and juggled it all the way to the halfway line before kicking it back up again.
He did it about a dozen times. When I was in Spain, I told the other Barcelona players about it. Three was the best anyone could have done.
Maradona was at his best for seven years because of his issues off the field, but like Messi, he was an amazing talent.
It's difficult to put anyone above Messi right now because of his success at club and international level.
He has won a trophy with Argentina already, that seems to have taken the weight off his back, and that is one of the reasons he is playing so well inQatar.
I can't think of a better way for the World Cup to end than with him winning it.
Gary Lineker was talking to a friend in the Middle East.
Get the latest results and goal notifications for any team at the Fifa World Cup by downloading the BBC Sport app: Apple - Android - Amazon
You can get a daily dose of the World Cup on the radio.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
