Before the final: Lionel Messi announces retirement from the World Cup

Created: 12/14/2022, 8:52 am

By: Marius Epp

Argentina's Lionel Messi wants to crown his career with the world title.

© Tom Weller/dpa

Lionel Messi will play his last game at a World Cup on Sunday.

The Argentine superstar announced this before the grand finale.

Next Sunday, the football world will see Lionel Messi perform magic on the World Cup stage for the last time.

"I'm very happy to end my trips to World Cup tournaments with my last game in a final," announced the 35-year-old a few hours after the 3-0 (2-0) semi-final triumph over Croatia.

Which doesn't necessarily mean that he's saying goodbye to the national team immediately.

But even before the final on Sunday in the Lusail Stadium in Qatar's capital Doha, the six-time world footballer recognized: "It's many years until the next World Cup and I don't think I'll make it until then.

And finishing it that way is the best.”

Of course, after losing the 2014 World Cup final against Germany, Messi hopes for a happy ending, to emulate his idol Diego Maradona (1986) or the World Cup scorer Mario Kempes (1978), and the trophy for the third time at the Rio de La Plata pick up.

Against the Croatians, Messi continued his record hunt, is now Argentina's top scorer in World Cup tournaments ahead of Gabriel Batistuta with eleven goals, and on Sunday he can finally overtake Lothar Matthäus' 25 World Cup games and become the sole record holder, as well as his five goals and three assists in the tournament add more.

"You never tire of showing everyone that you're the best in the world," writes even his friend Luis Suarez in amazement.

And England's idol Gary Lineker only asks rhetorically: "Is there still a debate?" So the discussion about who the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time, ed.), the greatest of all time is.

Even Brazil's legend Pele kept his fingers crossed for Messi on Tuesday, evidenced by his daughter Kely on Instagram.