Sir Alex Ferguson on Lionel Messi’s performances at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
🗣️ “I’ve spent my entire life watching football. I’ve managed against the greatest players, coached some of the best and witnessed generations of talent. But what Lionel Messi is doing at 39 years old is beyond anything I’ve ever seen.”
“Most players at that age are long retired or struggling to keep up with the pace of the modern game. Messi? He’s carrying Argentina to another World Cup final. He isn’t surviving he’s dominating. That’s the difference.”
“People keep asking how he’s still doing it. The answer is simple: his football brain is decades ahead of everyone else. He doesn’t need to outrun you anymore because he’s already seen the next three passes before you’ve taken your first step.”
“Look at this tournament. Every time Argentina needed someone to stand up, Messi answered. When they were under pressure, he demanded the ball. When England thought they had one foot in the final, Messi completely changed the game with two outrageous assists. That’s what greatness looks like.”
“You can organise your defence perfectly, assign two or three players to mark him and spend months analysing every movement he makes. None of it guarantees anything because he only needs one second to destroy ninety minutes of hard work.”
“What amazes me most isn’t the ability it’s the mentality. The bigger the occasion, the calmer he becomes. While everyone else feels the weight of a World Cup, Messi plays as if he was born for these moments. That’s why he keeps breaking hearts and making history.”
“I’ll say something that some people won’t like, but I don’t care. We will never see another footballer like Lionel Messi. When he retires, an era of football retires with him. Players will win Ballons d’Or, score hundreds of goals and lift trophies, but nobody will combine genius, consistency, longevity and humility the way he has.”
“Enjoy every minute he’s still on the pitch, because when Lionel Messi walks away from football, the game will lose a little piece of its soul. There will be great players after him but there will never be another Lionel Messi.
David Beckham on England’s 2-1 defeat to Argentina after Lionel Messi inspired the comeback.
🗣️ “I’ll be honest I exploded when England scored. I was on my feet celebrating because I genuinely thought we had one foot in the World Cup final. Then I looked at the pitch and one thought hit me… ‘Messi is still playing.’”
“And that’s the mistake everyone makes. They celebrate too early against a man who has spent nearly twenty years destroying dreams. The scoreboard said England were winning. Messi’s face said, ‘This game isn’t over.’”
“I know Leo better than most because he plays for my club. I’ve watched him train, I’ve watched him prepare, I’ve watched him win. But even knowing how special he is, what he produced tonight still left me speechless.”
“England had the lead, the momentum and the crowd. Then Messi completely took over the match without even needing to score. Two assists. Two moments of pure genius. He ripped England’s belief apart and dragged Argentina into another World Cup final.”
“At 39 years old, he made some of the best defenders in world football look like they were chasing shadows. That’s frightening. Most players are retired by that age. Messi is still deciding World Cup semi-finals.”
“As an Englishman, this is heartbreaking. As a football man, I have to be honest I’ve never seen anything like him. You can have the perfect game plan, the perfect tactics and the perfect lead, but if Lionel Messi decides the story isn’t finished, he’ll rewrite the ending himself.”
“I celebrated England’s goal… and ten minutes later I was watching the greatest player I’ve ever seen tear our World Cup dream into pieces. That’s how ruthless he is. That’s why every generation will remember his name.”
“I wanted England in the final more than anything. But when Lionel Messi reaches this level, you stop watching a footballer… you’re watching football history being written right in front of your eyes.”
Argentina no recuperó un jugador expulsado por una llamada de Trump. A 🇺🇸 sí.
Argentina no es país anfitrión del mundial. 🇺🇸 🇲🇽 🇨🇦 sí.
Argentina no hizo que Irán tenga que ir y venir tras cada partido y no poder alojarse en donde se juega el mundial. 🇺🇸 sí.
Los hinchas argentinos no amenazaron a sus rivales de otros equipos durante ningún partido. Los de 🇲🇽 sí.
A Croacia no le anularon 3 goles cuando jugó contra Argentina. A 🇵🇹 sí.
Argentina no fue a los hoteles de sus rivales la noche anterior para no dejarlos dormir. 🇲🇽 sí.
A ningún rival de Argentina le expulsaron un jugador y le cobraron un penal dudoso. A Inglaterra, rival de 🇲🇽 sí.
Argentina no ganó ningún partido por un único penal dudoso. 🇫🇷 si.
Argentina no insultó a jugadores de ningún otro equipo por su nacionalidad, lo que ameritaría una expulsión automática. Mbappe sí.
Pero la tramposa es Argentina 🇦🇷
😂🤌
Scenes that I never thought I would see, a Dance off between the Scottish and Haitians fans 🇭🇹🏴
This is what soccer is about, bringing people together and forgetting our differences. Love this!