Lionel Messi’s international retirement could be on the cards, with teammate Leandro Paredes hinting that the 39-year-old may have played his final match for Argentina.
Lionel Messi may have played his final match for Argentina. The 39-year-old was left in tears after Argentina’s 1-0 defeat to Spain in the FIFA World Cup 2026 final, and those tears may well have been due to the game possibly being his last for his country. According to his Argentina teammate Leandro Paredes, Messi had decided ahead of the World Cup final that that match would be his final appearance in Argentina colours. Paredes described Messi’s decision as “painful”.
Paredes was asked a question regarding Messi’s retirement in an interview ahead of a match for Boca Juniors in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana. There, the midfielder appeared to confirm that Messi’s international farewell may have already happened.
“I think he has made his decision, and that it really was his last match with the national team,” Paredes said in a media interview ahead of a CONMEBOL Sudamericana match for Boca Juniors.
“I hope that is not the case, and I hope he can carry on playing, but the decision ultimately rests with him. Anything that makes him happy will certainly make us happy, so we hope for that, we hope he continues,” Paredes further said.
“It is painful, because I think we kept saying it throughout the World Cup, we did not want that last match to come, we did not want it at all,” he further said.
