Manager reacts after two World Cup winners are banned from watching Lionel Messi’s final game for Argentina
Two World Cup winners won’t be at Lionel Messi’s farewell match for Argentina against Benin on Tuesday because their club didn’t let them travel. Their club coach has now shared the reason why.
Messi said he’s retiring from international football after Argentina lost the World Cup final to France, but he will play one last match for his country in Buenos Aires. All of Messi’s 2022 World Cup teammates who aren’t already in the Argentina squad were invited, but Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina won’t be there.
Messi’s farewell match is a friendly and will kick off at 8 pm local time in Buenos Aires on Tuesday. This falls during the international break, when many European teams play their last Nations League games of this period. However, both Dybala and Molina’s club, Roma, blocked them from traveling.
Roma’s head coach, Gian Piero Gasperini, told Sky Sports Italy that the players were asked to stay in Rome because they would have to spend too many hours flying right before their important Serie A match away against Como on Sunday. He said, “We have an important game on Sunday, and traveling so far to Argentina would mean a long flight just before that. Roma preferred not to risk it.”
Gasperini called Messi’s farewell “emotional” and said, “I’ve seen many star players as both a player and coach, but it’s hard to think of anyone who has done as much as Lionel. I’m sorry his time with Argentina is ending.”
In Argentina, the match will be shown on free TV so all fans can watch it. In the United States, where Messi now plays for Inter Miami, the game will only be available on the Spanish streaming service ViX. In the UK and Ireland, the game is live on Premier Sports 2, a paid service starting at £13.99 per month. The broadcast begins at midnight UK time, with the match kicking off at 1 am.
Benin, Argentina’s opponents, are ranked 89th in the FIFA world rankings, just two spots behind World Cup qualifiers New Zealand. Their top scorer is former Huddersfield striker Steve Mounie with 22 goals, and their all-time top scorer, Stephane Sessegnon, retired in 2023.