Lionel Messi India Tour Live: Sleepless wait ends in disappointment
or many fans who kept vigil through the night, the wait ended in heartbreak as they failed to catch a glimpse of the Argentine great.
Due to tight security arrangements, Messi was whisked out of the airport around 3.30 am and taken to his hotel via a back entrance, leaving hundreds of supporters disappointed.
Only a select few airport staff managed a fleeting look at Messi as he stepped off the private Gulfstream V, dressed sharply in a black suit over a white T-shirt, before being driven straight off the tarmac.
Scenes turned chaotic at the Hyatt Regency as fans sprinted through corridors chanting “Messi! Messi!”, with the echoes carrying well into the early hours of dawn.
The hotel lobby resembled an Argentine fan zone, awash with sky-blue jerseys, scarves and flags. Breast-feeding infants clung to mothers, children ran around excitedly, while exhausted fans slumped on sofas as the buzz intensified.
Messi checked into Room 730, with the entire seventh floor sealed to prevent any movement near his suite.
With security at its tightest, some fans booked rooms at the hotel in a bid to stay as close to Messi as possible.
A family from New Alipore checked in a day early so their son, Krish Gupta, a Cristiano Ronaldo fan, would not miss the moment.
"I'm a die-hard Ronaldo fan, so what? His biggest rival is coming to my city and I cannot miss the moment. So we planned to stay in the hotel a day in advance," said Krish, a Class 9 student of Birla High School.
He wandered around the coffee shop with his mother and elder sister, hoping for a glimpse of the icon.
"I just want to tell him to play football with me. And if I'm not successful, I will go to the gym tomorrow morning to catch a glimpse of him. I have my autograph book ready and hopefully I will get a selfie."