Pablo Zabaleta on what it's like to play in a World Cup final

I couldn't sleep the night before the World Cup final because of two reasons.

The kind of anxiety I had never had before, and the fact that all the Brazilians were letting off fireworks outside our hotel at 3am in the morning, made me very nervous.

All of the team was awake because of the noise and the desperation of the Brazil fans who were desperate to see us fail at the World Cup.

When I woke up, my first thought was 'today is the day'.

When you are about to play in a World Cup final, you realize that it is going to be the biggest game of your life, even though you have already played hundreds of football games.

When I was a child, it was one of my dreams, and the best way to describe it is when you get there. It was hard to think about anything else other than 'wow, today we can be world champion'.

Waiting for the final this time brings back a lot of memories, because it was a very long day before kick-off and all that was on my mind was if we were going to win.

My club teams gave me the chance to win many trophies. Every year was a new challenge but this was different.

The World Cup only lasts for four years and that makes it very special. One of the things I was thinking about when I was 29 was if I would ever get the chance to play this game again.

It was hard to prepare for the game mentally even when I arrived on the pitch.

I imagined how amazing it would be to win in front of our fans when I knew I was only 90 minutes away from glory.

I did not think about the other outcome.

Frustration, anger and pain

You forget about the size of the game and your nerves as the game starts. You're in the right place.

Everyone thought Germany would destroy us after they beat Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals.

That didn't happen. We were a very good team and we had many good chances to score.

Mario Gotze scored Germany's winner at the end of extra time. All over, that was it. The game was close but we didn't have anything. It was a hard pill to swallow.

We went to our rooms for two hours after the game because we were crying in the dressing room.

It wasn't long until we were back together as a team that helped me a lot.

There is nothing we can do right now. We should be proud of what we've accomplished because it took Argentina 24 years to make a final. We're going to have a few beers in the kit room.

We all met in the same room and had a discussion about what had happened.

It took me four or five hours after the game to realize how lucky I was to play that game.

'I still think about how close we came'

The fans in Argentina gave us a good reception when we flew there the next day, which made a big difference.

When we saw that our people were happy and proud, that was what we needed to lift us from being so low.

I stayed in Argentina for a few days and when I went to restaurants or just for a walk, a lot of people came over to say thank you.

My family came together for the first time in years to watch the game at my house when I was able to join them, which was special for me because it was the first time in a long time that they had been together.

The World Cup makes me feel better about the result because it brings people together like that.

I still think about how close we came when I watch any clips from last year.

I have the boots I wore in that game at home, but it's difficult to look at them now.

When you lose a World Cup final, you don't know how long it will take for your country to return, but here we are again, eight years later, for Lionel Messi's last chance.

When Messi came into the room on the morning of the final I had breakfast.

I told Mascherano that I wanted Messi to score a couple of goals so we could win the game.

Even when I was on the field, it was impossible to not think that way. Everyone believes that Messi is the one who will make a difference.

He has been amazing at this tournament, always the main man and the true leader of the side, and I've been so pleased to see him enjoying himself.

Whatever the result against France on Sunday, I am so proud of him and the rest of the team, but what I really want is for him to lift the trophy this time.

The man was talking to a man in the Middle East.

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