Messi expected to make final Argentina appearance against Benin

Lionel Messi is expected to make what Argentina has described as his final appearance for the national team when it hosts Benin in a friendly on October 6 at Buenos Aires’ Estadio Monumental. The match had not yet taken place in reports published October 5, so his participation and the planned farewell remain prospective. The Argentine Football Association announced the fixture as a send-off at home for the captain, whose international career has spanned more than two decades. Argentina’s coach, Lionel Scaloni, has also described Messi’s influence on the team as unique and said his absence would be felt. The reports say members of Argentina’s 2022 World Cup-winning squad have been invited to the occasion. Messi enters the scheduled match with 207 appearances and 125 goals for Argentina, figures that make him the country’s record appearance-maker and leading scorer. An appearance against Benin would bring his total to 208, according to the pre-match accounts. Those records, like the farewell itself, describe the expected outcome rather than a result confirmed after the game.