Lionel Messi ‘completed football’ in 2022 – so what’s driving the GOAT’s pursuit of World Cup glory with Argentina in 2026?
For all the criticism of his captaincy, Messi unquestionably grew into his leadership role over the years, meaning he went from being an infamously quiet character who preferred to let his left foot do the talking for him, to aiming verbal volleys at 6’6″ opponents in the tunnel after games. This was a side of the world’s greatest player that most of us had never seen before, but his team-mates had – and they loved him for it.
Emiliano Martinez famously described the players as “lions who fight for Messi” and Julian Alvarez admitted ahead of the last Copa America that the entire squad was delighted to still have their beloved skipper on board because he just makes everything “better”.
Argentina had essentially become a band of brothers – or, as the inimitable Jorge Valdano said, the footballing equivalent of ‘Ocean’s 11’.
“I saw a photo the players getting off the bus, Messi at the head, the rest behind him, flanking him in a triangle – that has a symbolic value that went without comment but explains what Argentina is,” the 1986 World Cup winner told The Guardian. “You see the happiness that Leo has: he’s liberated.”
There was still some doubt over whether he’d play on until 2026. After all, Messi’s 2024 Copa America campaign had been curtailed by injury; his World Cup could be too.
For Scaloni, though, including Messi is a no-brainer. Even at 38, he’s still scoring goals and picking out passes that nobody else can even see let alone pull off, while his influence over the rest of the group is something Scaloni says he’s never seen before – which is why he was even talking about saving a spot in his 2026 squad for Messi all the way back in 2022.
There is a fear in some quarters that Messi risks tarnishing his legacy in the States, but it’s hard to see how. Unlike his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s already won the World Cup. Nothing can detract from what he’s already done. He completed football four years ago; now he’s just enjoying it.
