Lionel Messi retires from Argentina after 3-0 farewell win; top 10 goals reviewed
Lionel Messi played his farewell game for Argentina in Buenos Aires on October 6, finishing his international career with a 3-0 friendly win over Benin. The 39-year-old closed his time with La Albiceleste having scored 126 goals in 208 appearances.
Messi won one FIFA World Cup and two Copa Americas with Argentina, and the farewell match was described in the source as an emotional evening. This article compiles what the source ranks as his top 10 goals for the national team.
Ranked 10th is Messi’s long-range free kick against Paraguay in September 2012: a strike from over 30 yards that curved away from goalkeeper Justo Villar and into the net via the inside of the post. Another early entry, from October 2012 against Chile, saw Messi control a difficult pass behind the defenders before settling and finishing, a goal the source highlights for his composure under pressure.
The list includes a World Cup qualifying goal against Bolivia in September 2021 in which Messi passed the ball through the legs of a defender and looped it into the net. Also cited is a November 2007 World Cup qualification goal versus Colombia, where he twisted the ball away from defenders and finished from a wide angle.
A November 2016 free kick against Colombia is described as one of his finest: from 26 yards he fired a left-footed shot that looped up over the jumping wall, brushed the underside of the crossbar and dropped in. The source places Messi’s 2022 World Cup strike against Mexico at fifth on the list, noting it was one of two 2022 goals included and describing him taking the ball outside the penalty area and sweeping it into the bottom corner.
The Copa America 2007 chip appears among the selections, with the source saying Messi “had no intention to score from such an angle, yet he lifted the ball over the goalkeeper with the most flawless precision.” Also ranked third is his free kick against the United States in the 2016 Copa America, an arrowing attempt into the top corner that, according to the source, made him Argentina’s all-time leading goalscorer and became the first-ever free-kick goal nominated for the Puskas Award.
The source highlights Messi’s 88th international goal as a stoppage-time effort in which he scooped the ball in a wide area, cut onto his left foot and curled it into the far corner to secure a 1-0 win for Argentina. Topping the list is his June 2012 goal against Brazil: he received the ball on the right, moved to the outside of the penalty box and curled a shot into the top corner to complete a hat-trick, a strike that the source says left goalkeeper Rafael Cabral helpless.
For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Telegram.