According to the president of Argentina’s FA, the country’s training facility will be named after Paris Saint-Germain star Lionel Messi.
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Messi was essential to La Albiceleste’s victory at the World Cup in Qatar last year. The 35-year-old was awarded the Golden Ball for being the tournament’s best player after scoring seven goals and dishing out three assists as Argentina defeated France in the championship game.
In a friendly match on Thursday night, Argentina defeated Panama 2-0 thanks to a goal from Messi from a stunning free kick. He scored on Thursday against Panama for the 800th time in his professional career, and he is currently one goal shy of reaching the century milestone for goals scored for his country’s team.
The Argentine sensation passed Cristiano Ronaldo to become the second-ever player to score 800 goals, 30 goals behind him. Lionel Scaloni’s team was considered to be returning home for the friendly match against Panama, and Messi was playing in Argentina for the first time since the tournament in Qatar. As a result, the Argentine Football Association was eager to thank their captain. On Saturday, Messi received word of his most recent honor, and he was visibly moved. The seven-time winner of the Ballon d’Or posted on Instagram:
“One of the nicest awards I’ve ever received is this one. I appreciate the honor, thank you.”
Messi serves as the team’s captain. Beyond that, his status as the team’s leader and the majority of the members’ idol has aided the team’s cohesion in achieving their objectives. The former Barcelona captain was observed directing his players with a finger sign after the game against Panama. An online video depicting them all moving swiftly like an army is making the rounds on Twitter.
It’s not surprising that there is respect shown in the video. According to 90min, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez stated in 2021 that he would give his life to help Messi accomplish his goals for the national team. Rodrigo De Paul, Messi’s bodyguard and an Atletico Madrid midfielder, stated in a FIFA interview that he would fight for the Paris Saint-Germain forward if requested to do so. His teammates regard him with that amount of respect.
The 35-year-old is well-liked within his nation and abroad. After the 2-0 victory at El Monumental, he autographed Ivan Anderson’s jersey, as Sports Brief reported.
He accomplished the milestone of 800 goals for club and country with a wonderful free kick in the 89th minute of the match, which ended the game.
