Lionel Messi, Argentina’s pavement artist who sees shapes before others

With a free role, the No 10 has been the floating brain of his country’s side at the World Cup.

Argentina's Lionel Messi.

THE thing that made the goal was the touch; one of those touches where Lionel Messi doesn’t so much trap the ball or kill it but lets it come and nestle, falling asleep on his toe like a fond old cat.

There were still six more touches to go before the ball would be left spinning, with a kind of purr, in the back of Mat Ryan’s net. But it was the touch that set the clock running, as the ball was looped back out to Messi on the touchline from his own free-kick.