Lionel Messi brought the curtain down on his 21-year international career at midnight on Tuesday (Nigerian time), pulling on Argentina’s sky-blue-and-white jersey for the last time in a farewell friendly against Benin at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, a fixture that drew emotional tributes from across Nigerian football and beyond.

The 39-year-old had announced his retirement from international football on August 31, following Argentina’s 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final.

“I have nothing left to give,” Messi said at the time, explaining that the decision was painful but that he had given everything to his country.

The Argentine Football Association subsequently arranged the Benin fixture to give him a send-off on home soil rather than have his international career end on foreign ground, with some 85,000 fans packing the Monumental to witness the occasion.

Former Super Eagles midfielder, Ogenyi Onazi, was among several Nigerians to pay tribute to Messi, describing him as one of the greatest players to play the game.

“Messi, I want to wish him a happy retirement from the national team. He is one of the greatest,” Onazi told PUNCH Sports Extra.

“We are going to miss his quality in international football. For me, he’s one of the greatest. It’s going to be very difficult to see someone like this. I wish him all the best, and I wish his family as well, because gradually he is winding down to get more time with the family, but we are going to miss him.”

Former Super Eagles captain, Austin Okocha, also joined the chorus of admiration, hailing Messi’s unique gift for the game.

“Messi is on another planet; he’s art. He was born to play football,” Okocha said.

Nollywood actress and producer, Uche Jombo, penned an emotional tribute of her own on social media ahead of the farewell appearance, reflecting on what Messi’s career had meant to a generation of football fans.

“I honestly don’t know how to say goodbye to you, Leo!” Jombo wrote.

“For so many of us, you helped make us fall in love with football; watching you play is football. Messi is football! It became a part of our lives. We grew with you. We celebrated with you. We cried with you. We felt the heartbreaks, questioned whether the dream would ever happen… and then we watched you finally lift that World Cup.”

Tributes also poured in from outside Nigeria. Brazilian forward Neymar, who played alongside Messi at Barcelona, described him as a player who deepened his own love for the game. “Anyone who loves football has enjoyed you throughout all these years,” Neymar said, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano.

“It’s not only Argentina that thanks you; the whole world thanks you for everything you’ve 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.”

FIFA also marked the occasion with a short tribute on social media, simply writing, “one more time.”

The farewell carried an unmistakable African thread, with Benin’s involvement tracing back to Messi’s earliest clashes with the continent.

Benin assistant coach, Tunde Adelakun, who was present when an 18-year-old Messi inspired Argentina to victory over Nigeria’s Flying Eagles in the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup final, described the symmetry of the occasion.

“Africa has been at the heart of Messi’s remarkable career,” Adelakun said.

“I was physically there when they beat Nigeria in the final, where he was the most valuable player in that tournament. It’s an absolute pleasure that, when he is drawing the curtain on his international career, Benin will be part of that.”

Benin head coach, Gernot Rohr, who also managed Nigeria against Messi at the 2018 World Cup, called it a “big honour” for his side to provide the opposition.

“Myself, I could play twice with Nigeria against Argentina, and in the second game at the World Cup, he gave me his jersey. So it’s wonderful to see him again, and this time now, I will ask him for his signature because he did not last time,” Rohr said.

“His creativity, with his left foot, it’s like a hand; he could do everything with his left foot. His quickness, also, and the efficiency in front of the goal. These were very, very, very special qualities of this big player.”

Messi leaves international football as Argentina’s record appearance-maker and all-time leading scorer, with 207 caps and 125 goals before Tuesday’s farewell outing.

His honours with La Albiceleste include the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Copa América titles in 2021 and 2024, the 2022 Finalissima, and Olympic gold at Beijing 2008. He also won the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup, where his six goals, including two in the final against Nigeria, earned him the Golden Ball and Golden Boot.

For Nigerian football followers, Messi’s international career carried a distinct thread running through it, from Vincent Enyeama’s acclaimed performance against him at the 2010 World Cup in Johannesburg, to Ahmed Musa’s brace in the pulsating 3-2 defeat to Argentina at the 2014 World Cup in Porto Alegre, and Victor Moses’s penalty in the narrow 2-1 loss at the 2018 tournament in St Petersburg.

Though Nigeria never beat Messi’s Argentina on football’s biggest stage, those encounters remain etched into the country’s football memory, bookending a career that began with his heartbreak for the Flying Eagles in Utrecht in 2005 and closed, fittingly, against another African side in Buenos Aires. (PUNCH)

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