Argentina riding emotional rollercoaster at World Cup

AS Lionel Messi struggled to hold back his tears, Pablo Aimar let them flow on the bench.

Covering his hands with his face, Argentina’s assistant coach, the former player who Messi idolized as a child, was almost hyperventilating with emotion after the goal that kept alive the Albiceleste’s World Cup journey.

A sobbing Aimar even had to be calmed down by Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni as the final minutes were being played in the team’s 2-0 win over Mexico on Saturday.

This is how much it means to Argentina — the nation, the fans, the coaching staff and the players.

And, for Scaloni, it’s a real concern.

“We should have a little more common sense, and think that it is just a football game,” Scaloni said. “The truth is, I don’t share the feeling that you are playing something more than a game. And that’s what the players feel when they go out on