Yan wasan kaɗan ne ke harba bugun fenariti na farko a rayuwarsu ta ƙwararru a Gasar Duniya — amma hakan ne daidai abin da David Batty ya fuskanta a 1998. Gwanin ƙarshe na goma sha shida tsakanin England da Argentina ya ƙare da harbe-harbe na fenariti, kuma ya faɗa ga wannan ɗan wasan tsakiya mai ƙarfi da ya ci gaba da riƙe ƙungiyarsa da bugun biyar.

Kiper Carlos Roa ya kare shi. Argentina ta ci gaba. Kuma Batty, maimakon ya faɗi ƙasa da hawaye ko ya rufe fuskarsa da rigarka, ya ɗaga kansa cikin girman kai.

Da ya fita daga ɗakin sutura wannan dare, an ce yana da mamaki cewa abokinsai da wakilinsa, Hayden Evans, ya gangara daga babban fage don duba halinsa — kamar ba abin da ya faru na muhimmanci.

Bugun fenariti da ya rasa wanda bai karye shi ba

Natsuwarsa ta ci gaba har zuwa ƙin yarda da ƙarfi, shekaru bayan haka, don bayyana a talabijin na wata kamfanin abinci mai sauri wanda yake son yin wasa da wannan lokaci. Batty bai so ya samu riba daga baƙin ciki na magoya bayan da suka tafi Faransa ba. Wannan yanke shawara ya ƙara ƙarfafa matsayinsa na almara a tsakanin magoya baya.

Yanzu, yayin da England da Argentina ke shirye-shiryen sake haduwa — wannan karon a zagaye na ƙarshe kafin na ƙarshe na FIFA World Cup 2026 a ranar 15 ga Yuli — labarin Batty yana jin da mahimmanci fiye da kowane lokaci.

Zanen da ya ɓace a taron sake haduwa

A watan Disamba da ya wuce, wayoyin hannu da yawa sun rawar gida a faɗin duniya. Tsoffin abokan wasa kamar Rio Ferdinand, Mark Viduka, Jason Wilcox, da har tsohon manaja David O'Leary sun karɓi saƙonnin murnar haihuwa a cikin ƙungiyar WhatsApp ta Leeds United don ranar haihuwa ta 57 ta Batty. Matsala ɗaya kawai: Batty ba ya cikin ƙungiyar, kuma ba wanda ya gan shi tsawon shekaru.