Lionel Messi magic took over Jordan-Hare in World Cup friendly vs Iceland

AUBURN — Navy blue and burnt orange normally dominate the stands of Jordan-Hare Stadium. The No. 34 of legendary Bo Jackson or the No. 1 of Auburn football’s last national championship quarterback Cam Newton are popular jerseys seen on Saturday game days.

That changed on Tuesday, June 9, when Auburn’s school colors were traded for white and sky blue, and the No. 10 jersey was the clear favorite among the crowd. Whether it was illustrated in white with blue pinstripes, orange with black lettering or black with pink lettering, Lionel Messi and the Argentina World Cup team took over Jordan-Hare Stadium on the wet, weekday night.

The 38-year old reigning FIFA World Cup champion is one of the most decorated athletes in the sport of soccer and one of the more well-known sports personalities in the world.

His aura was felt when Messi took to the Pat Dye Field for the first time when Argentina began its warmups before Argentina’s World Cup friendly vs. Iceland. Jordan-Hare erupted in cheers whenever Messi flashed on the jumbo screen in the north end zone, waving to those in attendance.

“He’s a leader of their team, he’s a leader of their nation, and he gave the crowd everything they hoped for,” Iceland coach Arnar Gunnlaugsson said postgame. “Everybody came here to obviously see him play.”

Even Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown was sporting Messi’s jersey during pregame.

Messi wasn’t in the starting lineup for Argentina, beginning the match as a reserve. But that didn’t stop the camera from finding the global icon on the bench, garnering cheers almost as loud as when Valentín Barco scored the first goal for Argentina in the match.

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Seeing Messi on the jumbo screen for the sixth time prompted supporters to a chant in unison, urging Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni to sub him.

Those chants changed to “We want Messi” in the opening minutes after halftime concluded, and Scaloni obliged, with Messi rushing off to the back end in the 48th minute with a purple warmup jersey.

“I’ve seen it all now,” said Brian Reyener, who made the trip form Florida. “I’m not even an Auburn fan, but to have an opportunity to see this in a unique environment is something no one can take from me.”

Messi entered at the 70th minute and the air filled heavy with the screams of 88, 034. Two minutes in, Messi scored Argentina’s second goal of the match on a penalty kick. His squad won, 3-0.

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Jaeden Day covers high school sports, Alabama State football and Auburn recruiting for the Montgomery Advertiser/USA Today. You can find him on X at dayjaeden12, or reach him at JDay@montgome.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Lionel Messi’s aura took over Jordan-Hare Stadium for World Cup friendly