Argentine football legend Lionel Messi was able to turn his official farewell with his country into an exceptional display. Messi contributed to scoring a goal from a penalty kick, in addition to assisting two other goals, in the friendly match that ended with the Argentina national team’s 3-0 victory over its guest, the Benin national team, yesterday evening, Tuesday, local time.
At the Monumental Stadium in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, the fans who gathered in the stands dedicated a loud farewell tribute to the genius who, for more than two decades, represented the football pulse of the country.
In front of a crowd of 85,000 spectators, Messi concluded an international career that spanned 21 years, which saw him score 126 goals and win the World Cup in 2022, in addition to winning two Copa America titles.
After a corner kick taken by Messi, defender Nicolas Otamendi rose to the ball with a perfect header, opening the scoring for the Argentine national team in the 48th minute. Then Messi provided a decisive pass to the young talent Nicolas Paz, who returned the greeting to the great star with a wonderful finish of the ball with his left foot in the 61st minute, scoring the second goal for the hosts.
After 10 minutes, Messi scored a penalty kick with his left foot, placing the ball in the upper corner of the goal, consolidating his score as the best scorer in the history of the “Tango Dancers” team, and the fans chanted his name to greet him.
Although he continued to play at a high level at the age of thirty-nine, Messi announced, on August 31, that the end of his career with Argentina had come.
Messi played his last match, which was his 208th match in an Argentina shirt, amid a stunning fireworks display. He wore a special version of the Argentine national team shirt that features vertical stripes wider than the usual design, a huge sun, and a golden number 10 on the back.
The back design included a drawing of two goat horns. In reference to the English word goat, which is also used as an abbreviation for "the greatest of all time."
Ten minutes after the starting whistle, the referee stopped the match to honor the captain of the Argentine national team, as the competitors and his teammates approached him to greet him, while the fans stood and applauded warmly, and Messi returned the greeting by waving his hand.
While the Argentine national anthem was played by the voice of a veteran who participated in the Falklands War in 1982, Messi was overcome with emotions as he stood with his sons Thiago, Mateo and Ciro, and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez tried to console him by putting his arm around his shoulders.
Beninese people eagerly followed Lionel Messi's last international match until late on Tuesday night, with their admiration for the Argentine star often overshadowing their support for their country's national team.
From one neighborhood to another, screens spread in Cotonou restaurants and bars so that the fans would not miss any moment of this historic friendly match against the Albiceleste national team.
A young worker said before the match kicked off at midnight local time (23:00 GMT): “We are looking for a screen to watch, and it is okay if we have to stay standing.”
Despite some loud chants of “Come on, Benin” during the playing of the two national anthems, the attention of the Beninese fans was entirely directed to Lionel Messi’s final dance, realizing that they were witnessing a historic moment in world football.
Sylvester Dagbidji (34 years old), a security detail and fan of the Argentine star, said: “It is an honor for Benin to be the last team that Messi faces.”
He added: “We will always remember that he retired from international football after the match against Benin.”
Not far away, Armand Foley (27 years old), a taxi driver, expressed the same sentiments, saying: “It will be very emotional for us Beninese. “Messi is a great player, and I am very proud of his career.”
During the match, the fans were applauding the runs of the Beninese “Panthers” team, but they gave the star, who won the Ballon d’Or eight times, a warm ovation whenever he touched the ball.
Craftsman Toussaint Kpadonou, who was watching the match with about a hundred people in front of a giant screen, said: “I feel sad because Messi will not play again. He was great with Barcelona, and I don’t know who else could offer what he did.”
As for the younger ones, they were unanimous in their praise of the star who lit up the world of football for two decades. Destin Avery (17 years old) said: “Messi is the best player in the world, and he has maintained his level throughout his career, from Barcelona to Inter Miami,” before reviewing the 2022 world champion’s impressive record of achievements.
In the 71st minute, after scoring two goals, Messi stepped up to take a penalty kick, from which the third goal came.
Then, many Beninese hoped that he would score against their national team. When the ball landed in the net, Cotonou exploded with joy. For many Beninese, the defeat in the result remained only a minor detail compared to the memory of that night.
Armand Foley said: “His absence will leave a void for us to some extent.”
Coach Thomas Tuchel said that the England national team succeeded in overcoming the disappointment of being eliminated from the semi-finals of the World Cup, and began to reap the benefits of that through the convincing performances it presented in the European Nations League.
After its dramatic 3-2 loss to Spain, the world champion, at the beginning of its tournament campaign, the England team quickly regained its balance with two wins over the Czech Republic, back and forth, in addition to sweeping Croatia by seven, raising its tally to 14 goals in the first four matches.
Tuchel, who is still receiving questions about the 2-1 defeat to Argentina in the semi-finals of the World Cup, believes that the team benefited from the lessons and gains it gained from the tournament held in North America, instead of starting over, which gives it a solid base to build towards the 2028 European Championship, which England will host.
The 53-year-old coach told reporters after the 3-0 win over the Czech Republic at Wembley yesterday, Tuesday: “I think the most important thing is to keep moving forward.” I can only remind you that we did not exit the group stage, although some criticism sometimes suggested that we did. There were doubts and criticism, but I said from the beginning that we do not need to start from scratch, because we have a foundation on which to build. We presented a high competitive level in the World Cup,” he added, “We are now taking the next step, and this is always the most important. From the first day of camp, the players showed commitment and a wonderful mentality, and I am pleased that we succeeded in embodying that on the field during the four matches.”
England will resume its campaign in the European Nations League against Croatia on November 12.
