Rodrigo De Paul of Atletico Madrid turned back some subpar group stage displays to thrive in the knockout stages, ultimately emerging as one of the heroes of Qatar 2022. His capacity to provide support for Messi, covering territory for the Inter Miami star while making sure he got the ball and wouldn’t be attacked, was largely responsible for that.
Rodrigo De Paul discussed the World Cup, the Argentina national squad, his injuries, and to what extent he was ready to go to play for his country.
He said, “I got injured in the training, I took an MRI, and the doctor tells me that I had a torn muscle grade 1. “But I didn’t want to miss it, I didn’t know if we would eliminate the Netherlands, I was thinking I could’ve already played my last World Cup game. I don’t know what would happen in 4 years.”
❤️🇳🇱🚑 Rodrigo De Paul tells the story of what was happening behind the scenes when he got injured 2 days before the game against Netherlands:
“I got injured in the training, I took MRI and the doctor tells me that I had a torn muscle grade 1. He told me that I had to miss the… pic.twitter.com/X9GH7Yn9eh
— All About Argentina 🛎🇦🇷 (@AlbicelesteTalk) December 5, 2023
He added, “And then Messi tells me: ‘Don’t play it, I will take you to the semi-final, don’t risk it, you are going to play the semi-final. The test began, and when it was a second round, I was going slowly, the doctor looked at GPS and said, ‘You aren’t ready’ – There were 2-3 rounds left, and well I said, I’m going to close my eyes here and whatever happens that’s it, if I break my entire body, let it be, I will not play any game anymore but I will try and risk one more time.”
Rodrigo De Paul is known for his work rate for both, club and country and that is exactly what he put forth on the table during the competition in Qatar too. He did not want to miss out on anything and was ready to give it his all for his nation.
Rodrigo De Paul has a brother-like bond with Lionel Messi
The star player for Argentina, Rodrigo De Paul, has opened up about his wonderful friendship with skipper Lionel Messi, admitting that the 35-year-old is not afraid to show him affection. De Paul has a brother-like bond with Lionel Messi.
Messi and De Paul have been together since the former’s 2018 debut. Together, the two authored the most spectacular chapter of their international careers in December 2022, leading Argentina to their first FIFA World Cup victory in thirty-six years.
Rodrigo De Paul on Messi: “We play for the shirt, but we also play for him.” pic.twitter.com/pfix9h127Z
— All About Argentina 🛎🇦🇷 (@AlbicelesteTalk) December 13, 2022
De Paul joked with Messi regularly during the competition, picking up on his intelligence and never leaving from his captain’s side. On the pitch the outcome was the same, nobody could harm Messi, soccer fans around the world even termed De Paul as Messi’s “Bodyguard“.
Argentina stunned everyone by losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia in their FIFA World Cup opening, but they recovered magnificently to win the prized trophy. Players like Rodrigo De Paul, Angel Di Maria, and Julian Alvarez made sure that their country and their beloved captain, Lionel Messi won this most decorated completion and fulfilled his and millions of Argentine’s dreams.
