Thinking about it now, this is probably the end for Lionel Messi, Nicolás Otamendi, Leandro Paredes, Rodrigo De Paul and Giovani Lo Celso with the Argentina national team. Paredes, De Paul and Lo Celso pillars in the team for 8 years.
🚨Lionel Messi on Dibu Martinez in tears after loosing the World Cup final.
🗣️“I feel his pain for this lose, he has been outstanding for us since the start of this World Cup and deserves to win this trophy yet again with us but I also feel we let him down by not being able to play well enough for a win.”
“He struggle to make every possible save so we can manage to get to the end of the game and maybe penalties but the red card keeps punishing us for the rest of the game.”
“I console him and also let him know he was once a champion and this isn’t just a lose for him alone, we’re all together in this, we fought well but they deserve the win just like they played. In football you just can’t keep winning all the time, it’s something you should know and after you understand that it makes you seat up for what’s best for you.”
Lamine Yamal on Lionel Messi after Spain’s FIFA World Cup triumph over Argentina.
🗣️ Lamine Yamal: “Tonight I lifted the World Cup for Spain, but I also experienced something I’ll tell my children one day. The man who once held me as a baby was standing on the other side of the pitch, fighting for the same dream. Football has a beautiful way of bringing stories full circle.”
“When I looked at Messi after the final whistle, I didn’t just see an opponent. I saw the player who made millions of kids, including me, believe football could be art. I saw the man whose videos I watched over and over, trying to copy things that nobody else could do.”
“I know this defeat will hurt him. You don’t play with that much passion, carry your country again and again, and lose a World Cup final without feeling pain. Even in defeat, he kept demanding the ball, creating chances and refusing to stop believing. That’s what champions do.”
“People will talk about Spain winning this World Cup, and they should. But they’ll also remember that, at an age when most legends have already retired, Messi was still making the world’s best defenders panic every time he touched the ball. That’s extraordinary.”
“The photo of Messi bathing me became one of football’s most iconic images. Today we took another picture together, but this time I could thank him face to face. Without players like him, kids like me wouldn’t dare dream this big.”
“One day another generation will replace mine too. That’s football. But there will never be another Lionel Messi. Records can be broken and trophies can be won, but inspiring an entire generation to fall in love with the game is something only a few people in history will ever achieve.”
“Tonight belongs to Spain. Tomorrow, the debates will continue. But my respect for Lionel Messi will never change. He didn’t need to win this final to prove who he is. For me, he’ll always be one of the greatest players football has ever seen, and sharing the pitch with him was a privilege I’ll carry for the rest of my life.”
🚨🗣️New: Lionel Messi on why he started crying after receiving the silver medal despite the World Cup final defeat to Spain:
“I wasn’t just thinking about losing a final. I was thinking about everything that brought me here… every sacrifice, every difficult moment, every time people doubted us, and every time this shirt gave me the strength to continue.
“When I heard the Argentina fans chanting my name after the defeat, that was the moment that broke me. We had just lost the biggest game, but they didn’t turn their backs on us. They didn’t see a silver medal… they saw the journey. They saw the heart, the fight, and the pride we gave them.
“I looked into the stands and I saw families who travelled thousands of miles, people who dreamed with us, people who cried with us. That love is bigger than any trophy. Football gives you many victories, but moments like that remind you why you play.
“I cried because I felt the weight of the shirt, the love of my country, and the responsibility of wearing this badge. A medal can be silver, but the memories, the connection with the people, and the pride of representing Argentina… those things are priceless.
“Sometimes football gives you the perfect ending, and sometimes it gives you a painful chapter. But I learned that greatness is not only measured by lifting trophies. It is also measured by how you stand when your heart is broken.
“And hearing Argentina sing my name after losing a World Cup final… that was a victory of another kind. I will carry that moment with me forever.”
—🎙️Mixed Zone
Kind of the fans to sing Lionel Messi’s name. That’s what broke the tears. Nobody expected him to still be playing at a World Cup after what he did in Qatar. That he’s here, playing another final, that’s icing on a cake that was already iced, already beautiful.
🚨 Lionel Scaloni: “What Messi did at this World Cup is incredible”.
“I hope people are proud of Leo. He’s the greatest footballer to have ever stepped onto a pitch”.
Lionel Messi crying. You have to think that is it for him with Argentina. An incredible 20 year careee with the Argentina national team. The trophies won are there for all to see. Thank you for the memories, the moments, everything.
Lionel Messi did what he could in this final. He didn't see much of the ball and if anything was more of a defender. At 39 years old, the goals, the assists, the dribbles, the moments he had at thia World Cup, we have never seen.