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The farewell match took place at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires. Around 85,000 fans gathered in the stands to bid farewell to one of the greatest players in the history of Argentine football.
Before kick-off, the pitch was covered by a giant Argentina national team shirt bearing the number 10, Messi’s surname and the word ‘Gracias’ – ‘Thank you’. The teams’ entrance was accompanied by fireworks.
As early as the tenth minute, the match was halted for yet another celebratory fireworks display and a standing ovation in honour of Messi. The Benin players also took advantage of the break to pay tribute to the Argentine captain.
Messi was involved in all three goals
Despite the festive atmosphere, Messi was, as usual, at the heart of Argentina’s attacks. The captain took two dangerous free-kicks and had several chances to score from open play.
In the end, he was involved in all three of his team’s goals. First, Messi provided two assists for his teammates, before converting a penalty in the closing stages.
This goal was the Argentine’s 126th and final one for the national team.
Furthermore, Messi came close to scoring once more — his shot late in the match struck the post.
Messi announced his retirement from international football at the end of August. At the time, he stated that he had given the national team everything he could, and singled out the young players who would now carry on representing Argentina.
After the match, Messi spent around ten minutes addressing the fans from the stands. The farewell match brought his long-standing career with the Argentina national team to a close.
This story was translated with the assistance of artificial intelligence.The translation was also reviewed by the Logos Press editorial team.
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