Messi had just said goodbye to the national team, and the most talked-about moment wasn’t the goal or the assists.
After Argentina’s 3-0 win over Benin at the Monumental, an opposing player approached with his phone in hand to take a selfie. Messi turned toward him for a few seconds, but kept walking, and another member of Benin stepped in to move his teammate aside and let him pass.
The video went viral within hours. Some posts called it a “ugly gesture”, and described irritation at the insistence. But the images, on their own, don’t allow us to say that he rejected him on purpose.
He was 39, and had just played the last match of his career with the national team after announcing his international retirement. Infobae had previously reported that he wrote “The time has come. I’m leaving in peace”, and Ámbito reported that he cried on the bus on the way to the stadium.
Was it a snub, or a man exhausted and overwhelmed by the emotion of the toughest night of his career with the Albiceleste?