There are images we did not want to keep. Messi with his head down, his gaze lost, the weight of the world on those shoulders that carried a country for twenty years. Not like this. He did not deserve to say goodbye like this.
He tried. Boy, did he try. He left everything on the pitch, as always, until his legs and time—that opponent no one defeats—told him enough. He fell in the final, in his last performance, and football felt a little unfair to the one who gave it so much.
It hurts because it is Messi. Because we got used to him solving everything, to the magic always appearing. And today, seeing him sad breaks all our hearts.
But do not mistake sadness for failure. Losing a final does not erase an eternal career. The greatest is still the greatest, even if he cries today.
Thank you for everything, Leo. Even in defeat, you were immense.
Hold your head high, captain. An entire country gives you a standing ovation.