Messi returns to MetLife with one last World Cup shot
A decade after quitting Argentina at MetLife, Lionel Messi is back there for a likely final World Cup match against Spain.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Lionel Messi’s Argentina story is heading back to the New Jersey stadium where it nearly came apart.
At 39, Messi is set to lead Argentina against Spain on Sunday in the World Cup final at MetLife Stadium, in what is expected to be his last match on soccer’s biggest international stage. The setting carries a heavy echo: 10 years ago, after another painful final defeat, he said he was finished with the national team.
That night in 2016, Argentina drew 0-0 with Chile in the Copa America final before losing on penalties. Messi missed in the shootout, and afterward said he had reached the end with Argentina.
“I tried my hardest,” Messi said at the time, after saying he was done with the national team. He pointed to four lost finals and said winning a title for Argentina had not happened despite his efforts.
The retirement did not last. Messi returned to Argentina duty, played in three more World Cups including the current tournament, and changed the whole shape of his international legacy.
A late-career trophy rush
Since that low point, Messi has helped Argentina win two Copa America titles and the 2022 World Cup. On Sunday, Argentina can become the first team since Brazil to win consecutive World Cups.
He has also climbed into rare scoring territory. According to CBS Sports, Messi entered the 2022 World Cup with six career goals in the tournament and now has 21. At this World Cup, he is tied with Kylian Mbappe in the Golden Boot race on eight goals, despite missing several penalties.
Argentina have also lived dangerously in the knockout rounds. CBS Sports described Lionel Scaloni’s side as a team that has found late goals after looking in trouble, including in Wednesday’s semifinal against England in Atlanta.
England defender Dan Burn said after Argentina’s 2-1 semifinal win that England had kept Messi quiet for much of the match, only for him to still finish with two assists.
Spain know the problem
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has his own Messi scar story. Speaking Friday before the final, he recalled facing a young Messi while working at Sevilla in a Copa del Rey match against Barcelona.
De la Fuente said Sevilla tried to man-mark Messi. The game was 0-0 in the 70th minute, he said, until the assigned marker picked up a yellow card and was substituted. Messi then scored four times, according to de la Fuente’s account.
Now de la Fuente must plan for Messi again, this time with a World Cup on the line.
Scaloni, meanwhile, framed Messi’s presence in the final as something Argentina should savor. On Friday, the Argentina coach said reaching a World Cup final at 39 was “unbelievable” and urged people to enjoy watching him while he is still playing.
MetLife has not only brought Messi pain. CBS Sports noted he has won there since the 2016 Copa America final, including in a Copa America semifinal two years ago before Argentina went on to take that title.
Still, Sunday gives the venue a neat final twist. The stadium where Messi once walked away from Argentina may now host the last World Cup act of a career that came roaring back.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS Sports.