Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from international football following Argentina’s defeat in the World Cup final to Spain last month.The 39-year-old revealed on Monday afternoon that he made the decision to retire two days after the 1-0 defeat in the final on July 19, citing it was ‘the right’ time’.Messi then added in a note at the bottom of a statement that the death of his father Jorge at the start of the month made him ‘even more convinced than before’ about his decision.His statement on Instagram read: ‘After all this time that has passed since the final, and after much thought, I want to announce to everyone that I am retiring from the National Team…’It was a decision that hurt, and still hurts, to my core, but I understand that it’s the right time. I swear that I always gave my all, not just in the last few years when we won everything, but before that too. I always fought and gave everything for this jersey, to bring you joy and make you proud to be Argentinian through football.’Messi made his debut for Argentina in 2005 as an 18-year-old, going on to earn over 200 caps for his country, and captained the nation to their third World Cup triumph in 2022. Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from Argentina duty after 21 years in the team Messi played 207 times for Argentina and guided them to a World Cup triumph in 2022 Messi stated that the recent passing of his father Jorge made him ‘more convinced’ to retireThe attacker netted 125 goals in the famous blue and white, eight of which came during the World Cup in the US, Mexico and Canada, while he also won two Copa America titles.But after 21 years of playing international football, Messi stated ‘I have nothing more to give’ and that he believes there are plenty of ‘great young players’ ready in line to replace him.He continued: ‘Thank you for all the love and support over these 20 years. I’m going to miss hearing you all from the inside so much. Now I’m going to be just one of you, cheering and supporting you from the sidelines (in good times and bad, even more so).’Thank you to my family for always being there, for accompanying me on this beautiful but difficult journey. Thank you to each and every one of the coaches, teammates, and managers I had the privilege of working with. I take with me unforgettable memories and moments.’I leave with the peace and pride of having given you, along with my teammates, dreamlike moments. It was incredible to have experienced it with you all. I love you!’Thank you, God, for making me Argentinian. Go Argentina!’The footballing world has paid tribute to Messi, whom many consider the greatest footballer of his generation – if not every – with many of the Argentina squad writing messages of thanks on social media.Argentina’s Rodrigo De Paul, considered one of Messi’s closest team-mates, wrote a heartfelt message for the legendary attacker on his Instagram story.It read: ‘Your unconditional love for our country, your internal battles to never give up, your strength to always endure injustice, your leadership and human qualities with every player who entered the training grounds to make them feel welcome, the thoughtful gestures towards every member of our national team staff…’Simply thank you, the greatest of all time, thank you for making us so incredibly happy, you can’t imagine how many smiles you brought to our faces. You are eternal.Angel Di Maria, Cristian Romero and many others also relayed their love for their captain on social media.Another team-mate of Messi’s, Leandro Paredes, who is currently serving a 10-match ban from international football for his antics following the World Cup final, dubbed the former Barcelona star ‘the greatest of all’ in his tribute. Messi started his career on the international stage in 2005 when he was just 18 years old Messi also guided Argentina to two Copa America triumphs during his time as captain’Thank you for absolutely everything,’ he wrote. ‘You are and always will be the greatest of all. We love you, captain.’Messi has previously hinted that he was considering retirement from football following the devastating death of his father, Jorge, who was an integral figure in the career of his legendary son.Jorge passed away on August 7 following a battle with illness that overshadowed the Argentina captain’s mesmerising World Cup campaign in the United States.Lionel, who broke down in tears following Argentina’s group-stage win over Algeria while Jorge’s health was deteriorating, shared a heartbreaking letter to his father on Instagram at the time – in which he cast doubt on his playing future.’Dad, I still can’t believe you’re gone. It hasn’t sunk in yet, or rather, I don’t want to accept it. It’s very difficult for me to imagine never seeing you again, never talking to you again. I know you were suffering and that this is for the best, but you left too soon. We still had so much to enjoy together.’I don’t know what I’ll do without you, I don’t know how to go on. I only played football and now I have serious doubts that I’ll continue doing that for much longer. You were by my side from the beginning, it was so close to the end. Why couldn’t you hold on that little bit longer and we could have finished together?’Messi revealed that his father was the driving force behind his decision to play at this summer’s World Cup, but he will not attempt to play at a record seventh in four years at the age of 43.The death of Messi’s father saw an outpouring of emotional tributes from the football world, including from Messi’s first team Newell’s Old Boys, as well as Barcelona and his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.Ronaldo, whose own father, Jose Dinis Aveiro, passed away in 2005, passed on ‘much strength’ to Messi in these ‘tough times’.Messi steps away from international football as one of the most successful ever to play the sport. In his two decades playing for Argentina, he won five titles with the national team, including the magical World Cup triumph in Qatar. Messi netted 125 goals for his country while he also notched up 60 assists in blue and white The Argentinian also suffered World Cup heartbreak back in 2014 after a final loss to Germany MESSI’S STATEMENT IN FULL ‘After all this time that has passed since the final, and after much thought, I want to announce to everyone that I am retiring from the National Team…’It was a decision that hurt, and still hurts, to my core, but I understand that it’s the right time. I swear that I always gave my all, not just in the last few years when we won everything, but before that too. I always fought and gave everything for this jersey, to bring you joy and make you proud to be Argentinian through football.’There’s not much time left, and chapters are closing, and this is one that hurts me deeply. I love, loved, and will always love being on the National Team. I’ve given everything I have; I have nothing more to give, and besides, there are some great young players coming up behind me who deserve to be there.’Thank you for all the love and support over these 20 years. I’m going to miss hearing you all from the inside so much. Now I’m going to be just one of you, cheering and supporting you from the sidelines (in good times and bad, even more so).’Thank you to my family for always being there, for accompanying me on this beautiful but difficult journey. Thank you to each and every one of the coaches, teammates, and managers I had the privilege of working with. I take with me unforgettable memories and moments.’I leave with the peace and pride of having given you, along with my teammates, dreamlike moments. It was incredible to have experienced it with you all. I love you!’Thank you, God, for making me Argentinian.’Go Argentina!’*I wrote these words on July 21st, two days after the final. Today, after what happened to my dad, I’m even more convinced than before.’ <!- – ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/us/sport/football/article/other/mpu_factbox.html?id=mpu_factbox_1 – ->
The forward netted seven of his 21 goals in the tournament en route to Argentina lifting the trophy, including a brace against France in the final at the Lusail Stadium.The defeat to Spain this summer was Messi’s second World Cup final heartbreak, after the loss to Germany in 2014. It is believed that Messi will continue to play at club level for Inter Miami in the MLS, with his contract set to expire in 2028.The forward once again showed that he is still a class apart despite everything he has gone through this past month, netting four goals in Miami’s 7-1 thumping of CF Montreal in the league.Messi’s historic career at club level dates back to 2000, when he moved to Spain to join Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy from his childhood club, Newell’s Old Boys, in Argentina.He became the greatest of all time in an incredible 21 years in Barcelona, before stunning the world with a move to Paris Saint-Germain – orchestrated by Jorge – in 2021.He moved to Inter Miami in 2023, where it seems he will stay for a further two years as he enters his 40s.