Photo: Collected
Lionel Messi’s teammates have written special messages on his No. 10 shirt, expressing love, gratitude and respect for their captain. Their emotional messages recall Messi’s contribution in the Argentina national team shirt. The messages came to light before the wave of emotion surrounding Messi’s farewell had even subsided.
The teammates’ handwritten messages were seen in pictures released by the team’s kit sponsor. Among them, the message from Messi’s close friend Rodrigo De Paul drew particular attention.
De Paul wrote, ‘None of this would have been possible without you. I love you, brother.’ Expressing gratitude for Messi’s leadership and inspiration, Cristian Romero wrote, ‘Thank you so much for teaching us never to give up and to believe that everything is possible. I love you, captain.’
Emiliano Martinez, the goalkeeper of Argentina’s World Cup-winning team, also expressed his gratitude to Messi. His message reads, ‘Thank you for making me the best goalkeeper in the world. I defended your goals with my heart and soul.’
Lisandro Martinez, on the other hand, recalled Messi’s contribution. He wrote, ‘Thank you for changing the history of our national team, Leo. You lived and fought for us until the very last moment. I will miss you a lot. I love you.’
Lautaro Martinez highlighted the inspiration he received from Messi. He wrote, ‘Thank you for the legacy you leave behind and for making me a better player. I will always be grateful.’ And Leandro Paredes wrote, ‘Thank you for giving us so much joy. I love you.’
Nicolas Tagliafico also paid tribute to Messi. He wrote, ‘Thank you so much for your unconditional love for football and for this shirt, Leo.’
Besides the written messages, the kit sponsor has also released video messages from the teammates, in which they express their love and gratitude for Messi. In them, Romero said, ‘He is an extraordinary person. To be honest, I love him.’
Their remarks also showed that Messi is a great inspiration for Argentina’s future generation of footballers as well. Nico Paz and Franco Mastantuono are being talked about as future successors to the national team’s No. 10 shirt; they too described the experience of learning from Messi.
Mastantuono now plays for Fiorentina in Italy. He described playing in the same team as Messi as a ‘dream’. And Nico Paz, who plays for Como, said, ‘I have learned a lot from him. I am extremely grateful to him.’
The history Messi made by winning the World Cup and the Copa America with Argentina was reflected in his teammates’ messages. Alongside success on the pitch, these emotional messages also brought out his influence on his teammates as captain and the love between them.
