“This victory is a cry that we have long kept in ourselves”: in Buenos Aires, the deliverance of the Argentines

It is a blue-white joy that spreads with a single cry through the streets of Buenos Aires and all four corners of Argentina. The joy that overwhelms this country is five times greater than France, whose heart beats historically for football. Joy in the midst of this incredible match, full of upheaval, in which the Argentines saw either bright, then dejected, then confident again, then endlessly tense, angry, on the verge of breaking and, finally, happy.

“Messi, Messi” is the voice of one voice in this bar in Buenos Aires. Also chanted “Dibu, dibu”, the nickname of a goalkeeper whom Argentines can thank, in particular, for his game during shots on goal. Nearby streets, scorched by the sun this quasi-southern summer, remained deserted during the match. At first, timidly, as if no one dared to believe in this victory, the first cars began to honk. But little by little the concert of trumpets, songs and shouts takes over Buenos Aires. Everyone goes as one Argentine to the obelisk, the site of all football unrest in the capital, to celebrate.

“Here, we really need this cup”

The woman throws herself on her back and shouts: “My country, my country! Maria, 42, spent extra time with her hand on her chest, panting. She preferred to step aside for shots on goal: passionate Argentine fans are also besotted with suffering. “I am happy for the Argentine people, even if this joy is fleeting, it is. And this victory is also for Messi and his last World Cup,” exclaims the forty-year-old musician.

“But how to suffer, it is impossible! adds Antonela, 26, designer. Moreover, shortly before extra time, 42-year-old Maria Evgenia shouted: “But this is not fair! Please, what an injustice! as if the victory should go to the Argentines. “It is because the Argentine people are not ready for defeat. Here we really need it, this cut. We’ve been waiting for this for thirty-six years. And then, things are better in France than here…” said Manuela, a 26-year-old student, at half-time and two goals ahead, which then added confidence to her voice.

So here it is, this cross-section that brings together Argentines, constantly remembering their everyday life, replete with difficulties: more than 90% inflation, more than a third of poverty and no horizon, a breeding ground for their fatalism. “We are united! sums up Maria Eugenia”, watching the celebrations. “This victory is like a cry that we have kept in ourselves for a long time. This is Argentina: we are unhappy, and simple things make us very, very happy.”

In front of them are two young women stepping cumbia. Their soundtrack? Increasingly louder horns, which often include cars carrying shirtless passengers sitting by the windows. “Lionel Andres Messi” solemnly refuses 21-year-old Mateo, naming the identity of his player in full.

On the TV screen in front of him, the captain raises the goblet. “Here! He fought, he fell, he kept going, and he got there. He is the best in the world,” exults the young man, who, like many, appreciates Leo and finally saw the emotions that his elders told him about , on his coronation in 1986. “France had a good team,” admits Christian, 33… while trying to swallow. -Ayres, where under the blue sky rises the sun’s roar.