Editor's Blog
The footballing world came to a standstill last month when one of its greatest ever sons announced his retirement from international football. A heartbroken Lionel Messi publicly declared he'd no longer be wearing Argentina's colours after losing his fourth major tournament final as an Albiceleste player – his third final loss in two years as captain. Argentina's loss to Chile in the 2016 Copa America now means that the 29-year-old has been a runner-up in the competition three times, while the 2014 FIFA World Cup saw the player and his team fall agonizingly short to Joachim Low's Germany. I immediately sympathized with the FC Barcelona forward after I heard the news, not because I had experienced anything of the sort, but because Messi – a five-time FIFA Ballon d'Or winner and arguably football's greatest player of all-time – felt like a failure. And this he is not. Naturally, opinions on Messi's retirement were bandied about on all social media platforms, but what shocked me most was that many "fans" seemed to enjoy the player's breakdown. How? This isn't any ordinary player! This is Lionel Messi, someone whose goal tallies over the years have made playing FIFA 16 on amateur difficulty level seem realistic. This is a footballing icon with more superpowers than any of those before him and, as a football lover, you were happy to see him in tears? Explain yourself… With Messi's announcement coming on the same night as Argentina's loss to Chile, fans weren't stretching when they assumed that he'd quit due to the disappointing result, but after some serious digging into internal matters, it seems the loss was only part of why he made the decision. So sit tight, because this is where it gets interesting… According to several news outlets, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) has become embroiled in a number of corruption scandals in recent times, which led to many believing that Messi's retirement might have been impending regardless of their result in the Copa America. This would make sense, due to the fact that it wasn't just the Barca player being brought up when there were talks of retirement. Apparently, stars such as Sergio Aguero, Javier Mascherano, Gonzalo Higuain, Lucas Biglia, Angel Di Maria and Ezequiel Lavezzi are all considering throwing in the towel on the international stage, which indicates there is likely far more drama unfolding behind the AFA's closed doors. Think about it… there is no way players such as Di Maria, Higuain and Aguero would retire from Argentina without there being serious problems. None of the aforementioned players have even hit their 30s yet! It was also suggested that, up until May this year, Argentina's manager, Gerardo Martino, and all of those on his technical staff had not been paid for six months, which is one way for the AFA to quickly lose the trust of those passionately representing them… shocking at this level, if you ask me. The situation has, in fact, been so poor that a "normalization committee" from FIFA and CONMEBOL (South America's football governing body) was called in to oversee the running of the organisation. And late last year, in an attempt to elect a new president for the AFA, 75 club directors, who were voting for a new head, somehow managed to come up with a 38-38 tie. If that doesn't have corruption written all over it, I don't know what does, as the numbers literally don't add up. Messi himself expressed his frustration with the AFA before Argentina's Copa final in a social media post he shared of himself and teammate Aguero. The picture was of the Argentine forwards waiting on an aeroplane, with Messi's caption reading: "Once again on a plane waiting to leave for our destination. What a disaster the AFA are, god!" But, having looked at some of the circumstances that may have forced Messi's hand, do I think he will return to the field for his country? Of course, I do. This is a man who has always spoken about his affection for his homeland, despite not always receiving affection in return. However, it appears the Argentine fans were more devastated with the 29-year-old's decision to retire, rather than the actual result in the Copa final. It now seems that the Albiceleste faithful have realised what they've lost, even though it may not be permanently. Many Argentina fans have not considered Messi as one of their own, as he left for Spain in 2000, but since the shocking announcement, all the country's supporters have been doing is begging for their superstar to reverse his decision, with reports claiming he will do so in November for Argentina's World Cup qualifiers. Even Argentina legend Diego Maradona, who criticised Messi in the build-up to the Copa America for not having the necessary qualities to be an influential leader, has seemingly backtracked since his successor's announcement, by insisting that the Catalan club player needs to play for Argentina at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Maradona said, "Messi has to stay in the national team. He will go to Russia in form to be world champion. Those who are saying he should quit are doing it so that we won't see what a disaster Argentine football has become." As the saying goes, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone," and Argentine fans now seem to love him more than they ever have before. Although Messi is yet to make further comment, the world's best player is sure to be back – not to prove anyone wrong and certainly not for the AFA, but for the people… Cheers Kurt Buckerfield
