Times Square in New York turned into a sea of blue and white on Saturday as thousands of Argentina fans gathered ahead of the World Cup final against Spain at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday.
Supporters sang, danced and waved flags as they partied in the rain, in scenes captured by the Daily Mail. New York was hit by flash floods on Saturday afternoon, but the weather did not dampen the mood.
The fans were still celebrating Argentina's dramatic comeback win over England in Wednesday's semi-final. England took the lead through winger Anthony Gordon in the 55th minute before Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez scored late goals to send Lionel Messi's side through 2-1.
Spain reached the final by beating France 2-0 in their semi-final, with Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro scoring for La Roja.
Messi and Yamal's history
Sunday's final pits Barcelona legend Messi against Spain's 19-year-old forward Lamine Yamal, two players who once crossed paths in unusual circumstances years earlier. A photo from 2007 resurfaced on social media this week showing a young Messi helping bathe a baby Yamal in a blue plastic bathtub during a photoshoot for the Spanish newspaper Diario Sport and UNICEF. Other images show Messi cradling Yamal wrapped in a towel.
Yamal's father, Mounir Nasraoui, posted the photos on Instagram in 2024 with the caption "The beginning of two legends."
Messi reacts to viral photo
Two days before the final, Messi was asked about the images at Fanatics Fest in New York City by NFL icon Tom Brady. "That picture, it was crazy. Him as a baby, and now we are facing each other... so once again what a crazy picture," Messi said.
Messi called Yamal "one of the best players in the world right now." "He's only 19 years old and he has all of his future ahead. He has the opportunity to make history, but we are also going to give it our best," he added.
"I just wish him the best of luck, and he's part of the Barcelona squad as well. We will try to give them [Spain] the best match possible, [but] Lamine is not the only great player that Spain has. So again we will give it our all," Messi said.
Photographer Joan Monfort, a freelancer for the Associated Press, took the 2007 photos as part of a charity calendar produced by Diario Sport and UNICEF.
