Messi's G.O.A.T. India Tour set to dazzle sans football magic
Orissa POST
|December 13, 2025
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi's long-awaited return to India, after a magical maiden visit back in 2011, will be high on glitz but low on actual football, promising a spectacle that may not recapture the raw sporting frenzy that once shook the Salt Lake Stadium here.
His artistry in a competitive match will be missing this time. It would be quite unlike 2011 when more than 85,000 fans packed the stadium, some even perched on terrace edges, to watch Argentina edge Venezuela 1-0 in a FIFA friendly.
The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner is not scheduled to play serious football on the 'G.O.A.T. India Tour 2025'. It is a fully promotional, and commercially-curated event which will begin Saturday here and wind up Monday in New Delhi.
Yet, for a city that once worshipped Maradona, Pele, dazzled Dunga and embraced Ronaldinho, the arrival of Messi even without football is unmissable because Kolkata cannot ignore him.
Bu hikaye Orissa POST dergisinin December 13, 2025 baskısından alınmıştır.
Binlerce özenle seçilmiş premium hikayeye ve 9.000'den fazla dergi ve gazeteye erişmek için Magzter GOLD'a abone olun.
Zaten abone misiniz? Oturum aç
Orissa POST'den DAHA FAZLA HİKAYE
Orissa POST
Malabar 'Brides of India' campaign
Malabar Gold & Diamonds, one of the world’s largest gold and diamond retail chains, unveiled the 15th edition of its flagship ‘Brides of India’ campaign Saturday at its Chandrasekharpur outlet celebrating the diversity, traditions and emotional depth of Indian bridal heritage.
1 min
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Curbs imposed as Talcher tops nationwide AQI list
The Angul district administration Saturday imposed a series of curbs in Talcher after air pollution in the city, a major industrial and coal hub, reached alarming levels making it the most polluted in the country.
2 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
4 held for creating ruckus, extortion inside City bar
The Mancheswar Police arrested four persons in connection with a violent ruckus and extortion attempt at a bar in the Palasuni area of the city, the police informed Saturday.
1 min
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Neuralink can restore full body functionality: Musk
Neuralink will start high-volume production of brain-computer interface devices and move to a streamlined, almost entirely automated surgical procedure this year
1 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Dragon Dominance
One of the more interesting things to look forward to in 2026 is the rivalry between the two great powers of our age.
4 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Land that defeated the mighty Ashoka
History records victories, but it remembers defeats more vividly, especially when they transform the conqueror himself.
2 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
14 Naxalites killed in separate encounters
In 2025, a total of 285 Naxalites were gunned down in separate encounters with security forces in Chhattisgarh
2 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Fill 151 more vacant posts: CM to OPSC
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Saturday recommended to the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) to conduct examinations for filling up an additional 151 vacant posts, including 14 in the state civil service.
1 min
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Pak backs China’s Op Sindoor mediation claim
India has been consistently maintaining that there is no place for any third-party intervention in matters relating to India and Pakistan
1 mins
January 04, 2026
Orissa POST
Cong to launch nationwide ‘MGNREGA Bachao Sangram’
Ramesh claimed that no BJP-ruled state is in a position to implement the G RAM G law, which is against the federal structure of the country
2 mins
January 04, 2026
Listen
Translate
Change font size