At the age of 39, Lionel Messi has bid goodbye to the world of international soccer. After playing his last-ever game for Argentina against Benin, Messi bid adieu to the team and his fans with an extremely emotional and tear-jerking message. Messi fought back the tears as he gave an emotional speech that left Argentine stars in tears. Messi scored a penalty in a 3-0 win over Benin before addressing his supporters in Buenos Aires.

“It's hard to say anything today; there are so many emotions, so many things are going through my mind. The first thing I think of is my dad . All I can do is express my gratitude, as I said in my farewell letter.

“It was a great honour to wear this jersey for over 20 years. Even in the worst moments we've faced, I never stopped fighting, never stopped giving my all, and never stopped being there. Not coming back is going to be a huge pain,” Messi shared.

“I swear I'd like to come back for the rest of my life, because playing for the Argentine National Team is the most wonderful thing that can happen to you. While I want to stay here forever, I feel like it's the right time. The last World Cup was too much for me,” he added. “We dreamed of being world champions again, we came so close, and the truth is, nothing unusual happened. We gave it our all; the match against England was incredibly draining for us, both physically and emotionally. The truth is, we barely made it.”

He further shared his gratitude to all of his teammates for their efforts. “This is where I experienced one of the happiest days of my career: when we played again after winning the World Cup. I'll never forget what I experienced that day. It was beautiful,” he said. (quotes translated via Mirror)

With Enzo Fernández breaking down in tears and his wife looking at him with love, Messi finished off his speech by expressing his pride in being Argentinian and fulfilling his dreams with the people present around him.

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