"I already miss wearing it": Messi's farewell speech and the tributes that followed

Lionel Messi has spoken twice since his last Argentina match. On Tuesday night at the Estadio Monumental he took the microphone on the pitch and talked for several minutes; the next afternoon he posted a longer message on Instagram. By Thursday morning in Shanghai the replies had come in from his teammates, his rivals and clubs across the football world. 12

The speech began with his father, Jorge, who died in August. "The first thing I think about is my old man," Messi said. "I can only say thank you, as I said in the farewell letter. It was a great honour to defend this shirt for more than 20 years." 1

He said the ending would hurt. "Not coming back is going to be a great pain. I swear to you I would like to come for the rest of my life, because playing for Argentina is the best thing that can happen to you." Near the end he added: "Today it is surely my turn to live the saddest day of my career, because this is where I say goodbye to the national team and to all of you." 1

He also closed down the suspicion that has hung over July's World Cup final, which Argentina lost 1-0 to Spain. "In the last World Cup there was too much for me to live through. We had the dream of being world champions again, we came very close, and the truth is that nothing strange happened, whatever people say. The England match took a huge toll on our legs and emotionally. The truth is we arrived with very little left." 3

The Instagram post added what the speech had left out. "Yesterday was my last match and I already miss wearing the sky blue and white. I know I am making the right decision. It was an incredible road, full of joys and also some sadness, but I am clear that every step was worth it." He thanked his family, his friends, his teammates and their staffs, and "the clubs I played for, for always respecting my feelings and letting me give myself to my country whenever it was time to put on the national shirt". He also named Diego Maradona: "I don't want to forget Diego, who put our country where it belongs and who, as I always say, I know helped us from up there, with us and from heaven, in every step we took." A few minutes later he posted a second message, this one for his father: "You don't know how much we missed you last night." 2

The longest reply came from Nicolás Otamendi, who played his own last Argentina match on the same night and scored the opening goal from Messi's corner. "If this day was already special, sharing it with Leo makes it even more unforgettable," he wrote. "The best player of all time, the one who taught us never to stop believing, to get up after every blow and to defend this shirt with our hearts." 4

Emiliano Martínez wrote that saying goodbye is the hard part of football, and addressed it to both Messi and Otamendi. Lisandro Martínez called Messi "the greatest athlete in all of history". Cristian Romero, the captain who inherits the armband, wrote: "No one is going to repeat something like this. Thank you for everything you gave us, for everything you taught us, and for letting us live it beside you." Nicolás Tagliafico, Agustín Giay, Giovani Lo Celso, Leonardo Balerdi, Nahuel Molina, Tomás Palacios and Enzo Fernández posted as well; Gerónimo Rulli's was four words: "Eternal. 10." 4

Otamendi also posted a video from the bus on the way to the stadium, where the squad sang to Messi over La Mona Jiménez's "Beso a Beso": "Leo Messi, we want to sing to you / you are eternal, like Qatar 2022 / don't go, think about it once more / the whole Monumental is asking you." 5

His wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, posted: "There are nights that explain an entire life. And last night was one of those." She went on: "How beautiful it was to see you surrounded by so much affection, by so many people thanking you and giving you back everything you gave them for so many years. You earned that love." 6

Cristiano Ronaldo, who has faced Messi 37 times across their careers but only twice for Portugal, left a comment under the post: "Leo, so many years defending your country and a story that will last forever. All my respect for what you have achieved with Argentina. A hug." 7 Neymar wrote that it is not only Argentina that owes him thanks: "The world thanks you for everything you did for football." Ronaldinho wrote: "Your name is in the history of your country and of the whole world." Barcelona, Boca Juniors, Racing, River Plate, Independiente and CONMEBOL also posted tributes, CONMEBOL's reading "Thank you forever, captain". 8

Lionel Scaloni's contract runs to 31 December, and the federation has been negotiating a new one since September. Asked after the match about his own future, he said: "If everything goes well, I will still be the coach, and the legacy Messi leaves is tremendous. That is what I keep. No one is going to be the same on a football pitch again and we are eternally grateful to him." On whether he has signed, he said there was "still no news". 9

He was plainer about what Argentina lose. "It is going to be hard, he said it himself. What has been lived through these years is not normal and the hard moments may come. The feeling of having him beside you is incomparable, it is very hard to compare it with anything, to make people understand it. That aura I have not seen in anyone in my life. We will look for new tools, but that feeling will not be there any more." The federation's own report of his press conference recorded the same idea: "It has been a dream I was able to make come true; I never thought I would be the coach of the best footballer in history." 910

Messi's next match is at home with Inter Miami against D.C. United, on Saturday 10 October at 7:30 p.m. ET, which is Sunday 11 October at 07:30 in Shanghai. He goes back to a league he leads: 21 goals in 24 appearances, ahead of Petar Musa of FC Dallas on 18. Luis Suárez, his Inter Miami teammate, has 13. 1112

Inter Miami are third in the Eastern Conference with 46 points from 27 matches, level with New England and 14 behind Nashville, with seven matches left before the play-offs. D.C. United are 11th on 30 points from 26, and their striker Tai Baribo has 14 goals. 1113