Lionel Messi bids emotional farewell to Argentina with powerful message: ‘Not coming back will be a great sorrow’

Lionel Messi bids emotional farewell to Argentina with powerful message: ‘Not coming back will be a great sorrow’ Lionel Messi has delivered an emotional farewell to the Argentina national team, reflecting on more than two decades representing his country and the extraordinary journey that ultimately saw him lift the World Cup. Speaking to a packed Monumental Stadium, the Barcelona legend, who played his final game for the national team , struggled to hide his emotions as he addressed the Argentine supporters.  Messi thanked his teammates, remembered his father, and admitted that leaving the national team would be one of the hardest moments of his career. Despite the emotion surrounding the occasion, Messi managed to maintain his composure.  Towards the end of his speech, he even acknowledged that he was speaking at length because he did not want the moment to end. Messi remembers his father and defends World Cup effort Messi began his speech by reflecting on the person who immediately came to his mind. “It’s a lot of emotions. Obviously the first thing I think about is my dad,” he began. The Argentina captain also addressed the defeat against Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, rejecting suggestions that something unusual had happened during the match. “The truth is that nothing strange happened, as some are saying. “We gave it our all. The match against England was incredibly draining for us, both physically and emotionally. We barely made it. “We fought as we always do, but unfortunately, we couldn’t become champions. But have no doubt that every single one of my teammates left everything on the field for this jersey.” Messi thanks Argentina teammates and supporters The Barcelona icon then turned his attention towards the people who shared his international career, acknowledging the teammates who helped him achieve his biggest honours with Argentina. “All that’s left for me to do is say thank you. It’s meant so much to me to wear this shirt for 20 years. I never stopped striving, fighting, or wanting to be here. “This is a very difficult moment for me; I’ve been able to travel all over the country playing football, and I’m grateful for everything I’ve been fortunate enough to experience. “Thank you to my teammates who helped me become a champion in every competition we played in. I had warriors by my side who gave their all.” Messi’s message to Argentina’s next generation The most emotional part of the speech came when Messi spoke about no longer returning to play for Argentina. “Not coming back will be a great sorrow. I’d love to come back forever, because playing in Argentina is the most wonderful thing that can happen to you.” He also reflected on the achievement that fulfilled his biggest ambition. “As I said, the last World Cup was already more than I could have hoped for. We lived the dream of becoming world champions once again.” Messi finished with a message about unity and the responsibility of the next generation to protect the national team’s togetherness. “To build strong teams, you need to build united teams, because there are people who want to see the national team fail, and we mustn’t give them the satisfaction,” he concluded. Source: AS