Emotion was at its height in the aisles of the Monumental stadium during Lionel Messi’s official farewell to the Argentine selection. In front of more than 85,000 spectators gathered to witness his last appearance in the Albiceleste jersey against Benin (3-0), the eight-time Ballon d’Or looked back on his rich international career. He also spoke about the recent disappointment suffered at the World Cup and responded to conspiracy rumors surrounding his team’s journey.
Indeed, Argentina’s adventure during the last World Cup was not without controversy. If the selection benefited from a relatively accessible table until the semi-final – successively dismissing Cape Verde, Egypt then Switzerland – several arbitration decisions gave rise to heated controversies.
The leniency of the referees in the face of the brutality of certain Argentinian gestures has caused a lot of ink to be spilled, even pushing the Egyptian coach to accuse FIFA of deliberately favoring Argentina to lead them to the top. Despite this eventful trajectory and a qualification won after an intense shock against England (2-1) in the semi-final, Argentina finally lost in the final against Spain (1-0 after extra time), thus missing the opportunity to win a fourth star after those of 1978, 1986 and 2022.
“Nothing strange happened”
Faced with this climate of suspicion, Lionel Messi took advantage of his platform to brush aside these conspiracy theories. With his characteristic sincerity, the Argentine captain highlighted the physical and mental exhaustion of his group rather than so-called external favors.
“During the last World Cup, I experienced intense things. We dreamed of becoming world champions again, we were very close to it and, in reality, nothing strange happened, contrary to what is said, he said.
We gave everything, the match against England was extremely testing for us, both physically and emotionally. The truth is that we have reached the limit of our strength. »
For the legendary number 10, the team’s journey is based solely on work, self-sacrifice and self-sacrifice. He wanted to salute the commitment of all the players who shared his story in the national jersey, whether they were successful or not. Recalling that “all the teammates who played alongside him always gave their all”, Messi thus closes this major chapter of his career with dignity, leaving behind an indisputable legacy and a message of absolute respect for sporting ethics.
