Haha, when I was watching the World Cup live text commentary on Toutiao last night, Messi missed a penalty kick and Egypt was leading 2-0. A large number of fans flooded the comments saying that Argentina was a protected team, telling Messi not to worry, that the referee would surely help them win. At the time, I thought everyone was joking, but unexpectedly, it turned out exactly as predicted—Argentina really won, pushing the controversy over the World Cup referees’ impartiality to a peak.

From Messi’s post-match speech, it was clear that the veteran king wasn’t very confident, perhaps feeling a bit guilty too.

Whether it was fair or not, of course, opinions differ depending on one’s stance. But one thing is undeniable: Messi’s advancement is definitely good for the World Cup’s viewership. Ronaldo is already gone; if Messi also leaves, there would be even less to watch...

So, this is what real football is about—it needs drama to be interesting. $WLD