Antonela Roccuzzo (foto: Twitter)
Antonella Roccuzzo paid an emotional tribute to Lionel Messi after his international retirement, recalling the pain, triumphs, and the journey their children witnessed alongside him.
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Antonella Roccuzzo has written an emotional farewell to Lionel Messi's extraordinary Argentina career, revealing what moved her most after watching her husband spend two decades chasing glory with his country.
Messi retired from international football at the age of 39, bringing one of the greatest careers in Argentina's history to an end. Antonella responded with a deeply personal Instagram message about the triumphs, disappointments, and determination she witnessed along the way.
" I am so proud to see you close this chapter in this way. So many years, so many moments, so much joy and also so many disappointments," she wrote. " I have watched you suffer, fall, and get back up again. I have watched you continue when things did not go your way, and you always try again."
For years, Messi's relationship with the Argentina national team was defined as much by painful defeats as extraordinary individual performances. Eventually, however, he achieved the dream that had followed him throughout his career and lifted the World Cup trophy.
' Our children saw it all with their own eyes'
For Antonella, however, the most emotional part of the journey was not simply the trophies. It was knowing that their children had grown up watching their father refuse to surrender when his greatest ambition appeared increasingly difficult to achieve.
" There's something that really touches me about this whole story: our children grew up watching it all happen with their own eyes. They saw their father fight for what he wanted, how he refused to give up and how he believed until the end. They were there when you succeeded and when you lifted the World Cup trophy."
She added: " Maybe one day they will truly understand the greatness of your story. Today they are simply proud of their father."
Antonella concluded her message by looking beyond Messi the footballer and paying tribute to the person she has accompanied throughout his remarkable career.
"I'm proud of you too. Of your journey, of everything you've overcome, and above all of the man behind all these moments. What a privilege it was to experience all of this with you. We love you endlessly."
Messi's final goodbye to Argentina
Messi ended his international career just over a month after Argentina's 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final. He had originally written his farewell message on July 21, two days after the final, but waited before making it public.
The subsequent death of his father, Jorge Messi, further convinced him that the moment had arrived to close the chapter. In his own farewell, Messi admitted the decision remained deeply painful.
" After all the time that has passed since the final, and after much thought, I want to tell everyone that I am saying goodbye to the national team," Messi wrote. " This decision hurt me and still hurts me deep inside, but I understand that the right moment has come."
After 207 appearances, 125 goals, and the greatest trophy of all, Messi's Argentina story is over. Antonella's message offered another perspective on that extraordinary journey – not from the stands or the record books, but from the family that witnessed every fall, every comeback, and finally the ultimate triumph.