The Aporia · Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin

Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin

Read the original at Toronto Star ↗

Cite

APA MLA Chicago

Rey, D. (2026, October 5). Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/sports/soccer/messi-set-for-emotional-argentina-farewell-in-buenos-aires-friendly-vs-benin/article_42c03b95-32e0-51f8-85d5-695e6dded484.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Lionel Messi will play his final match for Argentina in a friendly against Benin on Tuesday at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. The 39-year-old footballer, who has scored 125 goals and won multiple international titles including the 2022 World Cup, is set to retire from international play after this game. Despite Messi's departure, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni remains optimistic about maintaining the team’s high performance level with emerging talents such as Nicolás Paz and Leonel Flores, who have already shown promise in recent matches against Bolivia and Burkina Faso.

Written by AI on 2026-10-05, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Lionel Messi will play his final match for Argentina in a friendly against Benin on Tuesday, October 4, at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, marking the end of an era. The 39-year-old superstar, who has been with Argentina since 2005 and is the country's all-time leading scorer with 125 goals, will bid farewell to fans during this emotionally charged game expected to draw around 85,000 spectators.

Messi’s legacy includes a World Cup title in 2022, two Copa América triumphs (in 2021 and 2024), an Olympic gold medal from 2008, and numerous other accolades. His final match features a special commemorative shirt designed to honor his GOAT status, incorporating the Sun of May symbol, Messi's personal logo, and golden details on the crest and numbers.

The game will also serve as a transition point for Argentina’s national team, with coach Lionel Scaloni highlighting the importance of letting new players take center stage. The match in Buenos Aires starts at 8 PM local time (1 AM BST) and can be watched in the UK on Premier Sports 2 starting from midnight.

Written for “Lionel Messi Farewell Match” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 22 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

1 of 23 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

64/100

Toronto Star's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Sports

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-10-05 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Toronto Star · 10860 article(s) · 28 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 28 correction(s)

2026-10-31

Inmate's escape is just the latest problem for Tennessee's troubled prison system

2026-10-26

Correction

2026-10-24

Correction

2026-10-22

News Clarification for Oct. 22

2026-10-21

No. 6 Hoosiers try to for rare rebound at Michigan after turning the page on 22-game winning streak

2026-10-19

Driver’s License Suspensions for Court Debt Draw Scrutiny

2026-10-16

Amputations and cancer treatment delays: Lawmakers hear testimony on Mississippi prison healthcare

2026-10-16

UPDATE: Golconda Gold Releases Q3 2026 Production Update at Galaxy

2026-10-08

News Clarification for Oct. 8

2026-10-07

Correction

2026-10-05

Entertainment Correction for Oct. 5

2026-10-03

Tennessee's prisons chief is resigning after failed execution of Christa Pike

2026-09-28

Organizations call for Action to End the Deaths of Indigenous People in Custody

2026-09-27

Police memorial recognizes six officers killed in the line of duty in 2026

2026-09-27

UPDATE: WSP to host Power & Energy-focused investor event virtually only

2026-09-26

News Clarification for Sept. 27

2026-09-26

Former federal public servant seeks better pensions for injured workers

2026-09-25

News Corrections for Sept. 25

2026-09-25

She has not been charged. But the Project South allegations have branded her with a 'scarlet letter'

2026-09-24

Correction

2026-09-23

MULTIMEDIA UPDATE: Smith+Nephew launches the new EVOS™ PELVIC Plating System at the 2026 Orthopedic Trauma Association (OTA) Annual Meeting, expanding the EVOS Plating Platform for pelvic and acetabular fracture management

2026-09-22

Costa Rican man complained of lack of care for diabetes before his death in ICE custody, family says

2026-09-22

Judges' grilling of accused men leads to sex assault and dangerous driving cases being overturned

2026-09-20

Jura Energy Corporation Provides Clarification Regarding Media Reports Concerning Its Petroleum Rights in Pakistan

2026-09-19

New details emerge about Toronto's guns-for-hire and the 'crash-out mission" that sparked the Project South investigation

2026-09-17

UPDATE: Osisko Critical Minerals Corporation Announces C$100 Million Private Placement of Special Warrants

2026-09-17

Alabama set to execute man for pawn shop killings months after his nitrogen gas execution blocked

2026-09-04

Orca Corrects Q3 Quarterly Dividend Announcement

Who wrote this

Débora Rey

3 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 I would love to keep coming back forever, because playing for the Argentine national team is the most beautiful thing that can happen to you.”

2026-10-07 · assertive framing · Messi caps Argentina farewell with a penalty and 2 assists in a 3-0 win over Benin

🔮 The 39-year-old superstar will play his final match for Argentina on Tuesday — a friendly against Benin at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires — marking a pivotal moment in the country’s football.

2026-10-05 · assertive framing · Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin

🔮 Scaloni, whose contract is set to expire in December, had hinted at stepping down following Argentina’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the World Cup final in July.

2026-09-22 · assertive framing · Argentina players urge coach Lionel Scaloni to stay amid contract talks

Also by Débora Rey

Messi caps Argentina farewell with a penalty and 2 assists in a 3-0 win over Benin

2026-10-07 · Toronto Star

Argentina players urge coach Lionel Scaloni to stay amid contract talks

2026-09-22 · Toronto Star

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

Argentina BUENOS AIRES Benin Burkina Faso World Cup

Subjects

Argentina GPE · 10× Messi PERSON · 9× Burkina Faso GPE · 3× Lautaro Martínez PERSON · 3× BUENOS AIRES GPE · 2× Benin GPE · 1× Diego Maradona’s PERSON · 1× Lionel Messi PERSON · 1× Lionel Scaloni PERSON · 1× Scaloni PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Alongside established stars like Emiliano Martínez, Cristian Romero, Enzo Fernández, and Lautaro Martínez, an exciting wave of new talent emerged — creative midfielders Nicolás Paz and Franco Mastantuono, and wingers Gianluca Prestianni and Leonel Flores.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-05

2026-10-05 · Toronto Star

Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin · assertive framing

Claims (23 extracted, 1 hedged)

Argentina fans are confident there is a bright future beyond Lionel Messi as the team’s most influential player of the last two decades prepares to bid farewell. asserted

player → be → farewell

The 39-year-old superstar will play his final match for Argentina on Tuesday — a friendly against Benin at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires — marking a pivotal moment in the country’s football. asserted

superstar → play → football

Messi leaves behind an extraordinary legacy, including the 2022 World Cup title, two more World Cup finals (2014, 2026), two Copa América trophies (2021, 2024), an Olympic gold medal (2008), and 125 goals as the national team’s all-time leading scorer. asserted

Messi → leave → scorer

His international retirement raises an inevitable question: Can Argentina remain among the global elite, or is a long trophy drought — reminiscent of the 35-year dry spell following Diego Maradona’s departure — on the horizon? asserted

drought → raise → horizon

“Messi leaves behind something unequaled,” national coach Lionel Scaloni says. asserted

Scaloni → leave → something

“We have to keep playing, but the feeling of having him on the pitch is unique. asserted

feeling → have → pitch

I’ve never seen anyone else convey what he does on a football field, and that is what we’re going to miss.” asserted

we → see → what

However, Scaloni — who is in advanced negotiations to renew his contract for another four years — looks beyond Messi with optimism: “The Argentine national team will endure. asserted

team → renew → optimism

We will remain at a high level, I have no doubt about that. asserted

I → remain → that

In the first two post-World Cup matches without Messi, Argentina dazzled in the past week with resounding victories against Bolivia 4-0 and Burkina Faso 7-0. asserted

Argentina → dazzle → Bolivia

Despite the opponents’ stature, the matches offered compelling glimpses of what lies ahead. asserted

what → offer → glimpses

midfielders → emerge → talent

Flores is a Boca Juniors youth player who made his professional debut just two months ago and has already earned senior national team experience. asserted

who → make → experience

“There’s a changing of the guard; maybe we have to play differently now, not thinking in terms of ‘Messi and 10 others,’ but rather as a unified team,” supporter Cristian Versalles, 55, told the AP after watching the victory over Burkina Faso on Saturday. asserted

Versalles → ’ → Saturday

His son, Ramiro, 23, added, “Given the number of players coming through, there’s definitely a new generation ready to step up. asserted

son → add → players

Paz, playing out of Italian club Como, was one of the scorers. asserted

Paz → play → scorers

Also at the friendly and wearing the No. 19 jersey — the same one Messi wore during his senior national team debut in 2005 — 10-year-old fan Uzzi Rivero admitted, “It makes me really sad that he doesn’t play for Argentina anymore.” asserted

he → wear → Argentina

However, the youngster scowled at the suggestion that Argentina might face a trophy-less era following Messi’s retirement. uncertain

Argentina → scowl → retirement

Another fan, Valentina Gago, 20, said: “I’m excited about Argentina without Messi; my favorite player is Lautaro Martínez. asserted

player → say → Messi

It’s not the same as Messi but I love him just the same. asserted

I → ’ → him

With his goal against Burkina Faso, Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martínez ranks as Argentina’s third-highest all-time goal-scorer with 42. asserted

Martínez → rank → 42

“As long as the players are eager to give their all for the shirt, for me, Argentina will remain a contender,” Gago said. asserted

Gago → give → me

The world will find out at the 2028 Copa América. asserted

world → find → América