The coach of the Argentine national football team, Lionel Scaloni, confirmed that the last appearance of the star Lionel Messi in the “Telegami” shirt against Benin on the sixth of next October will be a very emotional moment. He expressed his hope that the former national team captain will have an exceptional farewell befitting the size of his career in front of the Argentine fans at the “Monumental” stadium in the capital, Buenos Aires. He said in this regard: “It will be difficult not to cry.”
This final match marks the end of a legendary international career during which Messi, aged 39, played 207 matches and scored 125 goals since his first appearance in 2005, breaking all records for the number of appearances and goals with the national team, which led him to win the Copa America title in 2021 and 2024, and the 2022 World Cup, in addition to reaching the 2026 World Cup final, which the team lost. Against Spain, before announcing his retirement from international football.
The preparations for that confrontation included special arrangements to honor the Argentine legend. Adidas is preparing to launch a special shirt bearing a logo designed in the shape of the letter “M” instead of the usual logo, in addition to golden details on the team’s logo and shirt number, in addition to the player wearing special shoes that are predominantly white with black, blue and gold accents.
In a related context, Scaloni announced during a press conference held on Friday evening that defender Cristian Romero (28 years old) will take over the captaincy of the Argentine national team, succeeding Messi, noting that Romero – who previously held the position of third captain behind Messi and Nicolas Otamendi and had previously carried the armband in three matches against Chile, Venezuela and Mauritania – will be the new captain, with other options to wear the armband including Emiliano Martinez, Rodrigo de Paul, and Lautaro Martinez.
