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Doha: There is a thread linking the three favorites for Sunday’s World Cup in Qatar.
Brazil, Argentina and defending champions France are considered the main contenders for good reason, not least because of their star players.
Lionel Messi leads Argentina on a 36-match unbeaten run, Neymar leads a strong Brazil squad and France’s ability to retain the trophy will depend largely on Kylian Mbappe.
The trio of Messi, Neymar and Mbappe have joined forces at Paris Saint-Germain thanks to the wealth of the French club’s Qatari boss.
Their relationship has dominated the headlines in France this season, and their performances have been stellar.
Qatar caused a stir when it won the bid to host this year’s World Cup in December 2010. Just over six months later, Qatar Sports Investments bought Paris Saint-Germain.
Fast forward a decade and they have transformed from a struggling club to a major force.
Mbappe and Neymar became two of the most expensive signings in football history when they moved to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.
Messi joined them in Paris after leaving Barcelona last year.
They are among the favorites to win the Champions League this season, with Messi, Mbappe and Neymar scoring 46 goals in 22 appearances for PSG.
The World Cup has been cited as a reason for their excellence, especially Messi and Neymar.
Messi, 35, knows he is unlikely to have another chance at winning it. “This will definitely be my last World Cup,” he told ESPN Argentina recently.
A short walk along Doha’s Corniche or the nearby Souq Waqif market is enough to gauge Macy’s popularity in Doha.
Supporters, often from Qatar’s large South Asian population, soaked up the eve of the match wearing Argentina jerseys with Messi’s name and number emblazoned on the back.
Several people waited outside the Argentine base in the early hours of Thursday, hoping to catch a glimpse of Lionel Messi when Lionel Scaloni’s side arrive in Doha.
“Messi is the best. We like the way Argentina is playing and they are the best Messi,” said Shabi, a 36-year-old financial worker from Kerala, India.
Like Messi, Neymar is one of many players whose image adorns the giant building in central Doha.
After this World Cup, Neymar turns 30 and may be able to play in at least one more World Cup, even if he has previously hinted that it might be his last.
Injuries marred his 2014 World Cup campaign before Brazil lost to Belgium in the quarter-finals in 2018.
Injuries have hampered his performances in Paris since then. Until this season, when he looked fitter and sharper than ever.
“The World Cup is my biggest dream,” Neymar told British newspaper The Daily Telegraph this week. “Ever since I understood what football is.”
In stark contrast to his two club colleagues, Mbappe has already won the World Cup and was a teenager when he won it with France in 2018.
He represents the future, which is why Paris Saint-Germain spent huge sums of money at the end of last season to persuade him to renew his contract instead of joining Real Madrid.
Le Parisien recently reported that PSG would pay Mbappe 630 million euros ($652 million) pre-tax over the course of the three-year contract he signed in May.
Paris Saint-Germain dismissed the report as “sensational”, but cited figures that highlighted Mbappe’s stature.
“Kylian is a phenomenal player,” his France teammate Lucas Hernandez said on Friday. “It’s an honor to have him on our team.”
Mbappe’s France ended Messi’s Argentina’s hopes of reaching the last 16 in 2018.
This time they have a chance to meet again on the same stage. A semi-final between Argentina and Neymar’s Brazil is another possibility.
Neymar told the Telegraph: “We don’t discuss it much, but sometimes we joke about meeting in the final.”
Whatever happens, only one of PSG’s trio can leave Doha as World Cup winners.
Assuming the hosts don’t go all the way, the French club’s Qatari owners will be delighted to see either of them lift the trophy at the Lusail Stadium on December 18.
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