World Cup 2022: Messi Scraps Retirement Plans After Lifting Trophy

Lionel Messi has made a stunning U-turn on his earlier retirement plans.

The Argentinian captain was considering retiring from national football but has reportedly abandoned those plans.

As noted by Football Espana, Messi previously stated that the Qatar tournament would be his last, as he set his eyes on claiming the elusive world title.

Now, respected journalist, Fabrizio Romano, reports that Messi will not be hanging up his boots. The Argentinian captain reportedly said that he wants to continue playing for the national team as a champion.

Messi’s previous retirement

The Paris Saint-Germain attacker previously retired from international football but made a return after a few months.

Messi seemingly walked away from the national team setup after Chile beat Argentina in the 2016 Copa America final, talkSport reported.

The biggest World Cup snubs: A list of footballers left out of their countries’ World Cup squad

Football

“In the dressing room I thought that this is the end for me with the national team, it’s not for me. That’s the way I feel right now, it’s a huge sadness once again,” he said at the time.

Now with the World Cup title secured and his status as the greatest of all time all but confirmed, Messi wants to continue making memories with the national side.