On Lionel Messi’s ill-fated international debut in Budapest in 2005, when he was (very harshly) sent off 45 seconds after coming off the bench for swinging an arm at the Hungary defender Vilmos Vanczak, he received only two passes. Both came from Lionel Scaloni. It may not be much, but those two passes were the first contact in a relationship that may culminate in Argentina becoming only the third nation to successfully defend the World Cup.
Messi has spoken of Scaloni as one of the first members of the squad to truly welcome him. After he had scored against Serbia and Montenegro in the World Cup group stage in 2006, when at the age of 18 years and 357 days he became the youngest player to play for Argentina at the tournament, the first player to come up to Messi in the tunnel, grabbing him from behind in a congratulatory hug, was Scaloni. The former West Ham full-back is only nine years Messi’s senior but there has been an almost paternal aspect to their relationship ever since.
