Lionel Messi said on Wednesday he is having doubts about continuing his career following the death of his father last week.
Messi’s father, Jorge, died last week aged 68 at a medical clinic in the Argentine city of Rosario after a long illness.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do without you. I don’t know how to move forward. I only played football and now I have quite a few doubts about whether I’m going to keep doing it for much longer,” Messi wrote in a tribute on Instagram.
“You were by my side from the beginning; there was so little left until the end. Why couldn’t you hold on just a little longer so we could finish it together?”
Jorge closely accompanied his son Lionel throughout his career, beginning with his early years at Barcelona. He acted as a crucial pillar of support and, for several years, served as his representative.
The 39-year-old Argentina captain revealed one of the reasons he played in the World Cup, where they finished runners-up to Spain after an extra-time loss in the final, was because it was his father’s wish.
“You always asked me to play in the last World Cup and a few days before it started was when you got worse,” Messi said.
“It was the first time you weren’t going to be at a tournament… Every time a match ended, I would wait and hope for your message. That’s when I realised how real the situation was.”
In the message, Messi, whose contract with Major League Soccer outfit Inter Miami runs till the end of the 2028 season, reflected on the final months of his father’s life, which coincided with the 2026 World Cup.
“I kept telling you we would reach the final so you could make the trip,” said Messi, who returned to the United States on Tuesday night following his father’s funeral on Sunday.
“We made it to the final, but you couldn’t be there. I wanted to win it to bring it to you and show you a new one. I couldn’t, my legs just gave out.
“This time I tried to push past my physical limits, but I couldn’t. I never felt right,” Messi said in his first comments after the 1–0 loss to Spain in the final in New Jersey.
Messi highlighted his father’s pivotal role in his life and career: “You were a father, a friend, and an agent. You were always exactly who you needed to be in every moment, and you never put a foot wrong.”
Jorge Messi’s unusual absence from the World Cup in June had already attracted attention.
During the World Cup, the Argentine captain experienced mixed emotions after scoring a hat-trick in the opening match against Algeria, breaking down in tears while celebrating his first goal.
Messi’s family asked the media for “humanity” during the tournament amid persistent rumours over Jorge’s health.
After bursting into tears after scoring against Algeria in a group match, Messi had admitted to dealing with “a situation outside of sports”.
He later explained that his tears were due to “something unrelated to football” after going through “a few difficult, complicated days.”
Despite his grief, the Inter Miami forward pledged to honour his father’s memory through parenting his own children.
“I’m going to miss you so much, but you will always be present, especially in the upbringing of my children, because I will teach them and raise them the way you raised me,” he said.
On Sunday, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner bid farewell to his father during a private ceremony with close family and a few Argentina teammates in the town of Perez, adjacent to Rosario.
The cause of death was not disclosed, but local media reported that Jorge Messi had been suffering from cancer.
Source: Khaleej Times