nice guys

Yet another world cup football tournament rolled in. There are life size cutouts of Ronaldo with caption of “Not just heart, but heartbeat”, Neymar with “Sultan without crown” etc in Malayalam around where I live. Saw another where the Argentina fans were taunting the Brazil fans about getting beaten for seven goals that if they use that humiliation and come asking for trouble they will get it back. Today I was driving home right when first of Argentina group stage matches was starting and saw the large screen setup in one of the squares, even in a monsoon rainy day.

Last cup for Messi and few others maybe. I watched the match in which he was struggling to break the gridlock, waste a penalty and free kick. At the same time, Ronaldo had a heroic match, stuff of legends, against Spain where he scored a penalty and a dream like free kick which rescued his team. How fortunes flip in matter of days. I like to watch Ronaldo play, he is a genius talent, but for me he dropped from grace the day he and his team mates got Rooney who was one of his ManU team mates sent out with a red card in a world cup match and winking afterwards to the camera. Character is non negotiable. I was disappointed so much when Zidane headbutted the Italian defender and walked out with heads down by the side of the cup, but with the news about the comments the other one made which enraged him I can forgive him, I might have done the same.  I was also clueless why Suarez bit someone (incidentally Italian again) and got the red card, but reading about the thorny journey of Suarez till that point leaves the soft spot. Same with Cavani going out in another match, but revealed later that the Chilean defender misbehaved with him. 

I can accept the flawed emotional humane personalities, but not the vile ones. So when Messi missed the penalty again and ended the game in a draw with Iceland, I was thinking what must be going through his mind. How does he get strength to put it behind and play another day? How mentally tough he has to be to get up next day and give it another try? Can these nice guys finish first? Even if they lack the killer instinct, even if they don't stretch the moral limits of what is acceptable and not, even if they don't people under the bus in their journey to the top.. People who go through this kind of pressure and remain sane will be one of a kind..