Messi Scores, Assists Twice and Bids Teary Farewell to Argentina

An extraordinary Argentina story ended exactly as the script demanded for Lionel Messi, who scored, assisted and was victorious, with thousands of fans chanting his name through tears.

The 39-year-old played his 208th and final game for Argentina on Tuesday night, scoring his 126th international goal and providing two assists as Argentina defeated Benin 3-0 at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.

For more than 21 years, Messi carried the hopes, expectations and sometimes frustrations of an entire football-mad nation.

On his final night in the famous blue and white shirt, there was no pressure left to carry.

There was only gratitude.

The match had been billed as “the last tango”, and more than 85,000 supporters packed the Monumental to witness the end of one of the greatest international careers football has ever seen.

Messi responded with the kind of performance that has defined his career including creating, assisting and eventually scoring himself.

Messi Writes the Perfect Final Chapter

For a while, it appeared Messi might leave the stage without the goal everyone inside the Monumental wanted.

He had several opportunities during the first half, including chances inside the six-yard box, while two free-kicks were also saved.

However, for those who know, Messi has never been merely a goalscorer.

In the 48th minute, he delivered the corner that allowed Nicolás Otamendi to head Argentina into the lead.

Thirteen minutes later, Messi turned provider again, finding Nico Paz, who produced an impressive finish from outside the box to make it 2-0.

Then came the moment the entire stadium had been waiting for.

In the 71st minute, Messi stepped up from the penalty spot and sent his left-footed effort into the roof of the net.

The Monumental erupted.

“Messi, Messi,” rang around the stadium as Argentina's captain celebrated his 126th and final international goal.

It was the perfect ending: one goal, two assists and one final Argentina victory.

Messi finished his international career as Argentina's record appearance holder and record goalscorer, with 208 appearances and 126 goals.

“I Would Love to Keep Coming Back Forever” - Messi

After the final whistle, Messi stood in the middle of the pitch and addressed the supporters. The emotions that had followed him throughout the night finally spilled over.

“I would love to keep coming back forever, because playing for the Argentine national team is the most beautiful thing that can happen to you."

"The most beautiful thing,” Messi said.

He later described the moment as one of the most difficult of his life.

“There are so many emotions going through me right now,” he said.

“I'm surely forgetting many things I would like to say because this is a very difficult moment for me."

"The first person who comes to my mind is my dad."

“I leave grateful, proud and at peace. Thank you for everything.”

Messi was playing his first Argentina match since the death of his father, Jorge Messi, aged 68.

The memory of his father was therefore impossible to separate from the emotion of his final night in an Argentina shirt.

A Goodbye 21 Years in the Making

Messi's Argentina journey began in 2005.

His senior debut against Hungary was hardly the start anyone would have predicted for a player who would eventually become his country's greatest goalscorer and most-capped footballer.

Messi came on as a substitute and was sent off less than a minute later after his arm caught Hungary defender Vilmos Vanczak.

From that difficult beginning came two decades of extraordinary achievement.

He won

1. the Copa América in 2021 and 2024,
2. the Finalissima in 2022 and, most importantly,
3. the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

The World Cup triumph finally delivered the trophy that had eluded him for so long and allowed him to emulate Argentina's other immortal No. 10, Diego Maradona.

Messi also won

1. Olympic gold with Argentina in 2008 and
2. the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2005.

His international career ultimately produced 126 goals in 208 appearances, placing him second only to Cristiano Ronaldo in men's international goals.

Everything Lionel Messi Said in His Farewell Specch to Argentina

Messi admitted that leaving the Argentina dressing room behind will hurt.

“I have nothing left to do but thank this shirt,” continued Messi.

“For 20 years, even through the worst moments, I never stopped fighting, pushing forward, giving everything I had and wanting to be here."

“Not coming here any more and no longer being with the Argentina national team is going to hurt a lot."

"If it were up to me, I would love to be here for my entire life, because playing for Argentina is the most beautiful thing there is."

“I think I'm talking more than ever today because I simply don't want this moment to end, but I think the time has come for me to retire."

"The last World Cup took a lot out of us after everything we went through. We arrived in the final with just enough left in us, but we fought until the very end, like we always did."

“We came very close to winning it again, and despite everything that was said about us, nothing strange happened."

"The match against England took a lot out of us because we gave absolutely everything."

“In 2022, we had the dream of fulfilling not only my dream, but the dream of an entire country: becoming world champions again."

"And we did it.

That journey meant Messi could leave international football without regrets.

The Monumental Stops For No. 10

The emotion began long before Messi scored.

As the Argentina team bus travelled towards the stadium, Messi was filmed wiping away tears as thousands of supporters lined the streets.

Inside the Monumental, he walked onto the pitch accompanied by his three sons — Thiago, Mateo and Ciro.

His wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, and his mother, Celia Cuccittini, watched from the VIP area.

A giant Argentina shirt bearing Messi's famous No. 10 and the word “Gracias” was spread across the pitch before kick-off.

Then came another extraordinary tribute.

In the 10th minute, the match was stopped so the entire stadium could applaud Argentina's legendary No. 10.

Even the Benin players took turns shaking Messi's hand.

The crowd sang:

“Come, come, sing with me, and a friend you'll find; hand in hand with Leo Messi, we'll all celebrate the victory.”

The night was no longer simply a football match.

It was a farewell ceremony for a player who had become inseparable from Argentina's sporting identity.

Messi’s Final World Cup and the Pain of Spain

Messi's decision to retire came only weeks after Argentina's heartbreaking 1-0 defeat to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final in New Jersey.

Argentina had entered the tournament as defending champions and came agonisingly close to retaining the trophy.

Messi produced another remarkable World Cup campaign, scoring eight goals and providing four assists.

He ultimately finished his World Cup career with 21 goals across a record-tying six tournaments, second only to Kylian Mbappé's 22.

The defeat, however, took a physical and emotional toll.

“The last World Cup took a massive toll, everything I went through,” he said Tuesday.

“We had a dream, my dream and the whole country's dream, of becoming world champions again.”

Messi had already written his retirement message on July 21, two days after the World Cup final.

When he eventually announced his decision in August, his message was simple:

“The time has come.”

Scaloni Breaks Down over Messi’s Departure

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni struggled to hide his emotions.

The man who guided Messi through the greatest period in Argentina's history knows better than most what the team is losing.

“We can put together a great squad with the new guys coming up, but I've never seen that aura in anyone else in my life,” Scaloni said about Messi after the match.

“That presence he creates won't be there anymore."

"We'll look for new ways forward, but that feeling will be gone."

"Having enjoyed the experience of coaching him was incredible, and now we have to carry on without him.”

Scaloni had previously described coaching Messi as a dream.

“It's been a dream come true. I never thought I'd be the coach of the best footballer in history,” Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni said after the game.

“We are eternally grateful to him for giving us the opportunity to be with him."

“The tears are because so many things are going through my head. Not seeing him any more will be sad. He leaves us with an incredible legacy."

“The feeling of having him (Messi) on your side is incomparable. I've never seen that aura in anyone else in my life.”

The Monumental and the World Cup Memory

The choice of the Monumental for Messi's farewell carried enormous meaning.

It is the stadium where he has scored more goals for Argentina than anywhere else (19 goals) and the place where Argentina returned after winning the 2022 World Cup.

That return remains one of Messi's most cherished memories.

“I experienced one of the happiest days of my career here, the day we returned for our first match after the World Cup,” he said.

“I will never forget what I witnessed that day; it was the most beautiful thing that ever happened to me.”

The memory became even more powerful because it represented the moment Messi finally returned home as a world champion.

Argentina had waited 36 years for another World Cup.

Messi had waited his entire career.

“I Just Want to Tell You that I Love You” - Messi

More than 85,000 tickets for the farewell sold out within 90 minutes, while tickets later appeared on resale platforms for more than $2,500.

Members of Argentina's 1978, 1986 and 2022 World Cup-winning squads, along with their families, joined the celebration.

Messi looked around the Monumental and gave the supporters one final message.

“I just want to tell you that I love you and I'll miss you,” Messi said.

“I'm proud to be Argentine and to have fulfilled this dream with all of you. Thank you so much.”

His words triggered another emotional response from the crowd.

Messi had spent years being questioned by sections of Argentina's supporters.

He was once accused of not caring enough and was compared constantly with Maradona.

He experienced Copa América final defeats, World Cup disappointment and even briefly retired from international football in 2016.

But everything changed.

The 2021 Copa América victory ended Argentina's long wait for a senior men's international trophy.

The 2022 World Cup then completed the story.

By the time Messi walked onto the Monumental pitch for the final time, there was no debate left. Argentina had accepted him completely.

Di Maria, Neymar and Rodrigo de Paul Thanks Messi

Tributes poured in from across football.

Neymar, Messi's former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain teammate, paid tribute to his former colleague.

“It's not just Argentina that thanks you, the world thanks you for everything you did for football."

“Thank you for making me love football even more, it was an honour to have played against you and even more so to make history by your side.”

Rodrigo De Paul, one of Messi's closest friends and teammates, also described the profound influence Messi had on his life.

“He made me grow not only as a footballer, but also as a person."

“I became a better person, a better human being, a better athlete, a better father and a better friend."

“I want to tell him that I love him."

"He knows that he is my brother and that he has an enormous heart.”

Former Argentina teammate Ángel Di María added:

“Seeing him with so much happiness, and that tranquillity of knowing that he gave everything he had, is what makes us all happy."

“I thank him for life.”

A Final Tribute in the Buenos Aires Sky

The final whistle did not bring the farewell to an immediate end. Instead, the Monumental turned into a giant tribute.

A spectacular drone show illuminated the Buenos Aires sky, displaying images from Messi's career including the most iconic image of them all:

Messi lifting the World Cup trophy in Qatar.

Teammates gathered around him. Opponents embraced him. The stadium continued to celebrate.

And the player who had spent 21 years carrying Argentina's colours finally allowed himself to simply stand there and take it all in.

Messi leaves the national team as Argentina's most-capped player, record goalscorer and World Cup-winning captain, having transformed a complicated relationship with his country into one of football's greatest love stories.

He leaves with

1. 126 goals,
2. 208 appearances,
3. two Copa América titles and
4. one World Cup.

Perhaps his greatest achievement was simpler.

He finally became what Argentina had always wanted him to be.

1. Their No. 10.
2. Their captain.
3. Their world champion.
4. And now, their legend.

The story is Not Over for Messi

Messi's Argentina career may be finished, but his football career is not.

He remains with Inter Miami, where he has a contract running through the end of the 2028 MLS season.

He recently helped the club win the Campeones Cup, his fourth trophy with the MLS side.

So, while Argentina has said goodbye to Messi, football has not.

The final chapter in blue and white has been written but Lionel Messi's story continues.

And for Argentina, there is now only one thing left to do:

Say gracias, Leo.