"Thank you for making me love football even more...": Neymar's note to Messi ahead of icon's final int'l match

Messi, who had announced his retirement from international football on September 1, will be stepping into international colours one final time on home soil against Benin on Tuesday.

Posting on Instagram, Neymar, who retired from international football after the FIFA World Cup 2026 and was Messi's teammate in Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) colours, wrote that anyone who loves football has enjoyed his game through these years and expressed hope that the football maestro enjoys his final bow.

Anyone who loves football has enjoyed you throughout all these yearsToday is your final game wearing the shirt of your national team, your country, and I hope you enjoy every second of it and that all the tributes today make you happy," posted Neymar.

The Santos football star said that as he leaves, the world thanks Messi for what he has done for the sport and thanked him for "making him love football even more".

"It is not only Argentina that thanks you; the whole world thanks you for everything youve done for football. Thank you for making me love football even more. It was an honour to have played against you, and even more so to have made history alongside you," he signed off.

Messi announced his international retirement over one month after Argentina's World Cup final loss to Spain by 1-0 and just days after the demise of his father, Jorge Messi. Messi's father died on August 8 in the central Argentine city of Rosario at the age of 68.

The Argentina skipper is his country's most-capped player and highest goal scorer, with 203 appearances and 124 goals. He is also the highest goal-scorer in South American football history.

In 2022, after years of heartbreaks, particularly the 2014 FIFA World Cup final loss to Germany, Messi tasted FIFA World Cup glory, beating a Kylian Mbappe-powered France in the final. It was his country's first WC in 36 years and their third overall, as per ESPN.

Before that, Messi had also played a massive role in ending Argentina's 28-year title drought, securing the Copa America title in 2021 and winning it back-to-back after World Cup glory in the 2024 edition.

Messi had previously announced his international retirement back in 2016 after Argentina lost to Chile in the Copa America final that year, but reversed his retirement, leading his nation to World Cup glory six years later in Qatar

The legendary footballer appeared in six FIFA World Cups from 2006 to 2026, scoring 21 goals in 34 matches. He is the second-highest goal-scorer in the tournament's history, with France's Mbappe holding the record with 22 goals.

In this year's World Cup, Messi had eight goals to his name and four assists, making him one of the standout performers in the tournament. This also included his maiden FIFA WC hat-trick against Algeria. He had overtaken Germany legend Miroslav Klose's record of most FIFA World Cup goals before Mbappe snatched the top spot from him.

Messi is, however, still playing for his club, Inter Miami, in Major League Soccer (MLS). (ANI)