Lionel Messi announced his retirement from international football in a shock decision following Argentina’s penalty shootout loss in the Copa America final, sending shockwaves into the footballing world. Most football fans have taken exception to this decision, and their reasons seem to be based on sound grounds.
Despite all the troubles that he faced off the field, it can be said without bias that Leo Messi was always part of Argentina squads and starting XIs which were strong enough for him to compete at the highest level and the greatest of stages. Whether or not he was to blame for his own lack of international success, the act of retiring in exasperation seems to be one emanating from a defeatist, negative mentality, a weak one which fans do not expect from their idols.
There are plenty of wonderfully talented, world-class individuals in footballing history who never tasted international success, but did not give up and gave their best for their nation and attempted to serve their tenure without even hinting at retirement from football. Here is a list of all-time great footballers who have overcome far greater obstacles, and should serve as good examples for players of Messi’s caliber when they take decisions like he has.
Paolo Maldini:
We kick off our list with the greatest pure defender to ever grace the game. Paolo Maldini made his debut with Milan at the age of 16, and within 3 years of his debut, he became a regular starter for the Italian national team, having excelled for both Milan and the Italy Under-21 squad (with whom he reached a Euro u-21 final).
Over the length of his career, Maldini appeared in 3 European championships and 4 World Cups for his country, but never won the major international title that a player of his ability would have graced. He captained Italy in 74 games and appeared for them in 126 games overall, setting a record only surpassed by Buffon and Cannavaro.
Maldini suffered a number of heartbreaks at the international stage. After holding Maradona-led Argentina to a goalless draw over 120 minutes, Maldini and co were knocked out on penalties and eventually finished 3rd in the 1990 World Cup held in Italy.
In 1994, Maldini suffered yet another penalty shootout loss at the hands of Brazil, this time when Roberto Baggio infamously blazed his shot over the crossbar. After Maldini was appointed full-time national team captain, Italy was knocked out in the group stages of the Euro 96 in a group containing champions Germany and runners-up Czech Republic.
Maldini suffered the third shootout loss of his World Cup career in France ‘98, at the hands of eventual champions and hosts France in a nerve-wracking quarterfinal, despite again being instrumental in keeping out France’s attack and holding them goalless.
Maldini’s last great outing at an international tournament was at Euro 2000, when Italy lost 2-1 to France in extra time courtesy a David Trezeguet goal that followed a really late equaliser by Sylvain Wiltord. Italy lost controversially to hosts South Korea in the round of 16, and Maldini decided to hang up his boots and give a chance to younger players.
Despite not winning a trophy for Italy, his international career is held in the highest regard by fans, critics and contemporaries alike. His sense of timing regarding his career was impeccable, although he was still going great guns for Milan in 2006 when Italy won the World Cup that had long eluded them.
His retirement was not a result of exasperation with defeat, instead, it was motivated by a sense of responsibility towards nurturing newer talent. Messi would do well to follow his example.
Ronaldo Nazario da Lima:
Ronaldo the Phenomenon is the closest example we have to Messi in attacking ability on this list. After a spate of injuries and relapses in the late 90s and early noughties, Ronaldo was hardly able to make a single appearance of note for Internazionale, who had paid top dollar to bring him to the San Siro from Barcelona in 1997.
Having lit up the World Cup of 1998 in France with 4 goals and generally dazzling play that brought him into the reckoning for the Golden Ball honours, he suffered a concussion just a few hours before the scheduled kickoff. He did not travel on the team bus from the hotel, and it was initially assumed that he would not start the game.
He convinced coach Mario Zagallo to field him in the starting XI, but once on the field the impact of his concussion was quite clear. He was marked out of the game by Thuram, Blanc and Deschamps as France convincingly won 3-0.
His resolve to avenge the disappointment of this final drove him through the pain barrier, even though he had barely played a full-length competitive game for Inter in the 2 seasons preceding the 2002 World Cup. His performance in the Brazil pre-tournament camp, though, left little doubts about the fire in his belly to prove a point to the world.
The rest, as they say, is history. Ronaldo scored in 6 games out of 7 in the tournament, finishing with a tally of 8 and the Golden Boot to boot. Unsurprisingly, his performances for Brazil, and then for Real Madrid following a high-profile transfer to the Spanish capital, earned him his third World Player of the Year trophy.
Lothar Matthaus:
Lothar Matthaus, is a rather forgotten man in football today, not least because it has been over 25 years now since the crowning achievement of his career – winning the World Cup with Germany. Many people don’t, however, appreciate the quality of his career, mainly because he was overshadowed by the likes of Platini, Maradona and van Basten, among others.
He holds the record for the most appearances in World Cup games (25) and most FIFA World Cups played (5). He first featured on the national team in a major tournament at Euro 80, as West Germany won the competition for the first time. He, however, did not make a single appearance for them.
He was also left on the bench during their run to the final of the 1982 World Cup, except games against Chile and Austria, when he was brought on as a substitute. His first international tournament as a starter was a bit of a disaster, as West Germany could not qualify from their group to the semifinals at Euro 84.
It was in the World Cup of 1986 that he rose to prominence in the West Germany team that lost in the final again, this time to Maradona’s Argentina. Matthaus rose to the fore as an all-action midfielder who belonged to the very elite category of players in the history of the game, but the end product eluded him once more.
In the Champions League final of 1986-87, while playing for Bayern against Porto, Matthaus put in an impeccable performance before being substituted. After his substitution, however, Bayern conceded 2 in quick succession to lose a game they should’ve won. He must’ve been kicking himself while sitting in the dugout.
Although he was in top nick at the Euro 1988, Germany again lost 2-1 to eventual winners Netherlands. Matthaus then earned a transfer to Internazionale, where he completed 4 successful seasons with the Nerazzuri.
His first international success came at the World Cup of 1990, when Rudi Voller and Juergen Klinsmann fired Germany to the trophy. Matthaus, with his dogged, persistent approach, remained an integral part of every team he played for, till he retired at the end of the 1999-2000 season after the Disaster of Barcelona (Bayern conceded the goals after he was substituted in the 80th minute). He won another international tournament with Germany at the Euro 96, rounding up a fabulous career.
Diego Maradona:
Maradona has been villified for apparently having a direct hand in Messi’s retirement, but if there is one footballer who Messi can completely relate to in both technical and other footballing aspects, it is Diego Maradona, who had a very similar skillset and arguably played with a weaker supporting cast for the length of his international career.
Maradona had to face innumerable challenges in the form of an unsupportive, corrupt-to-the-core Argentine football association, apart from the myriad other challenges that all footballers faced in his heyday. Yet, if there is one individual who inspired his team to overall brilliance and international success, one needs to look no further than him.
Of course, he is not the best role model as a person off the pitch. Maradona has been an outspoken critic and has had a history of drug abuse, including a period in which he was banned from playing competitive football. But holding that against him as a footballer is unjust and unfair, for he was somehow always able to produce the goods for his country whenever needed.
One only needs to look at the World Cup of 1986 to see the stamp of one individual over the course of footballing history. With 5 goals and 5 assists, including the rather infamous brace he scored against England in the quarterfinals, he guided Argentina to the title past a marauding West Germany side in the final.
Even in the World Cup of 1990, he was quite clearly the best player to come out on the pitch, and he once again led Argentina to the final, where they would lose 1-0 to Germany courtesy a controversial penalty secured by Juergen Klinsmann.
For him to come back from what he saw as an unjust ban and still display the class he did for Boca Juniors back home in Argentina has to serve as inspiration for Messi.
Gianluigi Buffon:
As possibly the greatest goalkeeper to ever grace a football pitch, Buffon is indeed a role model for most footballers, irrespective of day and age. The drive he has shown through the length of his career is probably unmatched in the history of the game.
So long has he been at the very pinnacle of goalkeeping that it is difficult for most fans to remember a time when he was not among the very best in the world. And yet, there is one trophy that has forever eluded him: the Champions League title.
Not for the lack of trying on his account. He has made it to the final on 2 occasions, but in 2003, he was thwarted in the heartbreak of a penalty shootout, losing 3-2 to Milan. While in 2015, despite keeping out several blockbuster shots that most goalkeepers could not have, he could not prevent Juve getting soundly beaten 3-1 to a rampaging Barcelona.
During this while, he has seen all the highs and lows of football. From winning 2 successive league titles, to having them revoked by the Italian FA because of the Calciopoli scam and getting relegated to Serie B. And then getting back up to relevance, Champions League football and eventually now winning 4 Serie A titles on the trot as the best goalkeeper of the league.
Of all the decisions and achievements of his career, his decision to stick with Juve even after their relegation has to stand out as an example to every footballer. Indeed, if he can accept the mediocrity of having to play for a tainted club in Serie B straight after a World Cup triumph, surely Messi can stop whining and play for Argentina once again.
