THE SONG THAT BRINGS ARGENTINA TOGETHER
Football is a game that makes fans jump up and down and sing at the stadiums, in the streets, on the buses and on metro trains, creating moments that can never be felt in any other sport.
Football is also a game that makes footballers jump up and down and sing in the dressing rooms after winning a hard-fought battle on the field.
The video of Argentina players, including Lionel Messi, bouncing their arms and jumping and singing in the dressing room following their victory over Mexico in the make-or-break World Cup game has now gone viral.
But in the first-half of the game against Mexico when they were bullied on the ball by their fearless rivals, it seemed Argentina players had no energy to put up a fight.
And in the stands at the Lusail Iconic Stadium, their fans were almost silenced by their Mexican counterparts who were making the loudest noise, chanting and beating the drums.
But things began to change in the second half as Argentina found the goals and their rhythm on the pitch and the fans their voice in the stands.
As soon as Messi scored that first goal with a sublime finish from outside the box, the giant stadium started reverberating with the anthem of the Argentina national team.
It was now their fans that hit the high notes as they beat the drums and sang: “Ole, ole, ole, Ole, ole, ole, ola...”
When this reporter asked Luciano about the team’s anthem, the Argentine fan who has come all the way from the Santa Fe state in Argentina to Qatar, smiled from ear to ear.
“Oh, this is the most beautiful fan song. It means that Argentina is a feeling that I can’t stop, I can’t stop putting my energy in my team and I can’t stop supporting the team. It’s a feeling that never stops,” he said after the team’s victory over Mexico on Saturday night.
“It’s a magical feeling when thousands of fans start singing this song in a stadium. It gives me goosebumps. It is that moment when we feel we are all one country, there is no difference, no race, no religion, we are all Argentinians. It’s our country.”
Luciano also had a message for Brazil fans that had been mocking Argentina after their shock defeat to Saudi Arabia.
“The World Cup football is the biggest festival in the world. We are just happy to be here and support our team. But we will celebrate all the teams,” he said.
If Argentina make a deep run in Qatar, there will be a lot of big celebrations from these passionate Argentinian fans. And there will be a beautiful rhythm and melody in their celebrations.