Kurla resident Shaikh Ahmad, who was among the locally appointed support staff for Argentina at their Qatar University accommodation, reveals how the champions partied through the night
Shaikh Ishraque Ahmad with Lionel Messi at Qatar University recently
It was a sober party for Lionel Messi and his team, who clinched the prestigious World Cup after 36 years for Argentina, beating France 4-2 via a penalty shootout at the Lusail Stadium.
The Argentines went around town in an open-top bus ride and returned to their accommodation at the Qatar National University only around 1 am, a good three hours after Messi lifted the coveted Jules Rimet trophy. Then, at the University, the staff, mostly comprising Asian expat workers, had organised a party for their heroes. “There was a lot of singing and dancing around Messi. The players climbed on tables singing their famous Muchachos anthem song throughout. There were cold drinks, fruit juices, cornflakes, a special organic tea which the Argentines prefer and a lot of coffee. There was no alcohol,” Mumbai resident Shaikh Ishraque Ahmad, who has been working in Doha for two years and was contracted by FIFA to be among the support staffers at the Qatar University premises, told mid-day on Monday.
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Argentina players celebrate at the Qatar National University
Fans waiting back home
“They partied for another hour or so. Then, early morning, around 6 am the whole group left from here for the airport to catch their return flight home. They don’t speak English, only French and Spanish, but one of the local translators here told us that they were most eager to celebrate with their highly passionate fans back home and couldn’t wait to head back,” added Ahmad, 27, who has been fortunate to not just spend time around the world’s greatest footballer, but also get a jersey autographed by him. Ahmed explained how he got his prized possession: “It’s tough to approach the players as there is a six-tier security system around them which includes the local police, the Qatari Royal Police besides a host of private and international security officials. Messi has additional security and a personal manager, so it’s even tougher to get to him. And then he doesn’t speak English so that made things even more difficult. Fortunately for me, Messi’s wife [Antonella Roccuzzo] speaks a little English. So one day, when she was visiting here [all the players’ families lived separately at a hotel] I approached her and she asked Messi to sign my jersey.”
Ahmad, who along with his team were given free final match tickets by the Argentina team management, closely monitored Messi’s mannerisms throughout their month-long stay here and has come away very impressed.
A Lionel Messi-autographed jersey
‘A very humble man’
“He is a very humble man. He has no air about himself despite being such a mega star. His teammates respect him a lot. Whenever he walks into a room—he normally always walks in last—the players stand up. He prefers to sit by himself separately. He rarely speaks, but whenever he does, every single person in the room listens most attentively. I’m not a huge football fan, but after watching Messi, both on and off the field, I’m a huge Messi fan,” concluded Ahmad, who lives in Kurla East.
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