Messi’s Argentina farewell against Benin set for October 6

Lionel Messi is scheduled to make his final appearance for Argentina against Benin on October 6 at Buenos Aires’ Estadio Monumental, in a friendly intended to give the captain a sendoff before home supporters. The match is still in the future, and Argentina has not announced who will wear his No. 10 shirt afterward. Messi arrived in Argentina on October 2, according to an account of his return. The Argentine Football Association said the match was planned to provide him with a home farewell. Messi announced his international retirement on August 31, ending a career with Argentina that has spanned more than two decades. He led the team to the 2022 World Cup title and is reported to have scored 125 goals for the national side. Argentina’s plans for the shirt number are constrained by tournament rules as described in the reports. Those accounts say teams in international final tournaments must assign squad numbers in a continuous range, typically 1 to 26, leaving no number available to retire permanently for those competitions.