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Atletico Madrid’s Rodrigo De Paul and Juventus’ Leandro Paredes started a unique tradition during Argentina’s 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign in Qatar. Curiously, La Albiceleste have not lost a single game since the pair began their custom.
Football players are known for their unorthodox superstitions, for performing pre-match rituals that supposedly bring them good luck. Argentina midfielders De Paul and Paredes performed a peculiar custom religiously since the FIFA World Cup.
As revealed by Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, the two midfielders have been jumping onto the grass ahead of their teammates since Qatar. After coming on to the pitch, they walk around, soak in the atmosphere, and each has a candy before heading back to the dressing room.
De Paul and Paredes reportedly believe that their candy-eating custom helped Argentina win the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Such is their devotion that they followed the pre-game custom even in the friendly clashes against Panama and Curacao. Lionel Messi and Co. bagged a 2-0 win over Panama on March 23 before beating Curacao 7-0 five days later.
Ahead of the Curacao game, De Paul and Paredes even sang two famous World Cup songs, “Muchachos” and “¡Dale champion!”, with fans who had already filled the stadium.
Curacao goalkeeper thanks Argentina icon Lionel Messi after receiving special jersey
Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in Tuesday’s 7-0 win over Curacao at the Estadio Madre de Ciudades, taking his international tally to 102 goals in 174 games.
He has become only the third player in men’s international football to score more than 100 goals, behind Ali Daei (109 goals) and Cristiano Ronaldo (122 goals). After the game, Messi swapped shirts with Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room. The Columbus goalkeeper was elated with the gesture and took to Instagram to share his joy.
He uploaded an Instagram story, showing off Messi’s Argentina jersey, with the following caption:
"Dreams come true"
While the scoreline suggests otherwise, Room had a pretty good game against Lionel Scaloni’s men. The 34-year-old made nine saves, with seven of those sets coming from inside the box. He also completed two throws and made four recoveries.
Apart from Messi, Nicolas Gonzalez, Enzo Fernandez, Angel Di Maria, and Gonzalo Montiel found the back of the net against Curacao.
