Lionel Messi has confirmed that the 2022 World Cup will be his last for the Argentina national team. The forward will be 39 by the time the next edition comes around, and is not expected to continue till that time.
With a 35-game unbeaten run heading into the Winter World Cup in Qatar, Argentina are one of the favourites to win the competition. And on the back of their 2021 Copa America win, they are carrying even more momentum into the competition.
Lionel Messi confirms 2022 World Cup will be his last
“Is it my last World Cup? Yes, surely yes, surely yes,” Messi told Star+. “I am counting down the days to the World Cup. There is a bit of anxiety and nerves at the same time. Wanting it to be now and the nerves that were already there, what is going to happen. It’s the last one, how are we going to do. Yes, on the one hand, we can’t wait for it to arrive and on the other hand, we’re scared of wanting it to go well.”
The PSG star also commented on his team being the favourites to win the tournament this time around.
“I don’t know if we are the great candidates, but Argentina itself is always a candidate because of history, because of what it means,” he said. “More now at the moment we arrived. But we are not the top favorites it seems to me. There are other teams that are above us today, but we are very close.”