© EuroFootball.com
Argentinian national team coach Jose Pekerman said that eighteen-year-old Barcelona goalkeeper Lionel Messi is a "gem" after he finally made his debut for the Argentine national team in the first home match - Sunday's qualifying match for the 2006 World Cup in Germany against the Peruvian team.
Pekerman seemed to have succumbed to public pressure and allowed the young talent to start a match in the starting lineup for the first time.
The Barcelona goalkeeper-forward responded to the coach's trust by earning an eleven-meter penalty at the end of the match, which was converted by Juan Roman Riquelme. Argentina won the match 2-0.
"He is phenomenal, a true gem," Pekerman said after the match. "We can expect a lot from him, we just have to hope that he won't encounter problems, which usually affect young players."
"It seems that we have found a player who will bring us a lot of joy," Pekerman praised. "The fact that he is already playing in such matches speaks for itself."
Messi, who earlier this year was the leader of the Argentine youth team that became champions, had represented his country's national team twice before this match.
His debut in August was very unsuccessful. Coming on as a substitute in a friendly match against Hungary, he saw a red card for a foul on an opponent's elbow just one and a half minutes after coming on.
After these matches, Messi received support from both coach Pekerman and many of his teammates, and played for eight minutes in the match in Paraguay in September, which Argentina lost 1-0.
According to the newspaper "La Nacion," Messi appeared confident in his abilities in the match against Peru, not afraid to attack even after experiencing rough tackles. In the 81st minute, he was brought down by Peruvian goalkeeper Leao Butron, and the referee rightly awarded a penalty kick for this foul.
"La Nacion" reports that Messi was fouled seven times, and the eighteen-year-old shot five times on goal.
Before these matches, Messi rarely kicked a ball in his homeland: at the age of 13, after playing only a few matches for the Newell's Old Boys youth team, he moved to Barcelona.
