We’re not going... but at least these two will be there
looked set to end with a crash into the first hurdle towards the next one. But cometh the hour cometh the man as once again Messi’s magical feet stepped up to prove exactly why he is lovingly hailed the greatest of them all. A first-half double revived the dream before a customary classy conclusion put the icing on the cake, clipping a stunning chip over keeper Maximo Banguera just after the hour. With results going their way elsewhere, Messi’s stellar show rocketed Argentina into third place in the South American qualifying group, earning an automatic qualifying spot alongside Brazil and Uruguay. No one smiled more than Messi when the final whistle blew in Quito and his manager believes no one is more deserving to be at the heart of football’s ultimate extravaganza.
Sampaoli said: “I told the group, ‘Messi did not owe the World Cup to Argentina but football owed the World Cup to Messi.’ The nationality of the best player in the world is luckily Argentine.
“The World Cup could not be the same without Messi. We had to play with that in mind.
“As a consequence of that pressure we are stronger now, this qualification will make us stronger to face the future.”
Typically humble, the five-times Ballon d’Or winner heaped praise on the collective effort instead of discussing his own glory after his vital hat-trick.
Messi said: “We deserve to be there after what we’ve gone through during qualifying. We did not deserve to miss out and our place at the tournament is merited.
“It isn’t easy to play here with the unique conditions (the high altitude) but fortunately for us everything went perfectly.”
Ronaldo – usually less shy than Messi about his star status – was refreshingly humble in his assessment of the team effort that secured Portugal’s passage to Russia without the need for a nerve-racking play-off.
The European champions may have left it late, requiring a victory over Switzerland in the last group game. But an own goal from Johan Djourou and Andre Silva’s strike ensured Ronaldo, fitness permitting, will appear at his fourth finals.
The 32-year-old Real Madrid star wrote on Twitter: “Great team effort! Thank you all for your support. Russia, here we come!” to reach the last 16 for the first time in three seasons.
The Scottish champions need to score at least three while not losing an away goal if they’re to complete the rescue job.
But McCabe said: “There’s a buzz around the team. We beat Forfar 5-0 at the weekend which helped our confidence. We’ll take that into the second leg and hopefully do the business.”
McCabe, who joined City on loan from Arsenal in August, almost put City ahead after just three minutes in Kazakhstan.
However, the Scots were sunk after losing three goals in a 15-minute spell just after half-time.
The 22-year-old said: “It was frustrating as we were still confident going in at half-time. We created a lot of chances but that threegoal burst floored us.
“I’d never heard of them before but they won a difficult qualifying group so obviously meant business. We know what we did wrong.”
● Tonight’s game kicks off at 7.30. KEITH BURGESS urged his junior troops to be patient against the Republic tonight after running out of steam against Northern Ireland.
Scotland threw away a two-goal lead in yesterday’s Quadrangular Tournament opener after Graham Wilson and Gary McCann netted.
Boss Burgess said: “We went out and everybody was bombing about like it was the last game they were ever going to play. We’ve got to play our way into the game and be patient.”