Lionel Messi reveals when he will retire

Tom Weber

Updated: 27 Mar 2024 16:49 GMT
4 min read

Lionel Messi playing for Inter Miami. — © IMAGO

Lionel Messi has spoken about his retirement plans in a fresh interview.

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The Inter Miami star is still going strong at the age of 36. Arguably the greatest football player of all time, Messi is now seeing out the twilight years of his career playing for David Beckham's Major League Soccer franchise.

Despite his age, Messi is still one of the world's undisputed best players. This is not only proven by the fact he won the 2023 Ballon d'Or, having led Argentina to their third World Cup triumph the year prior, but also by the ridiculous numbers he is still putting up in Fort Lauderdale.

Since joining Inter Miami last summer, the attacker has notched a ridiculous 16 goals and seven assists in just 19 games and helped the Herons claim their first-ever piece of silverware by winning Leagues Cup in 2023.

Yet despite still being one of the most devastating forwards in world football, Messi isn't getting any younger and age appears to be slowly but surely catching up with him. These days, Messi is frequently rested for games and he has already dealt with several minor injuries since joining Beckham's side.

Messi on retirement

Naturally, then, given his age and recent fitness problems, the question of retirement is one that likely frequently enters the megastar's head nowadays. Speaking on the Big Time Podcast, Messi gave his thoughts on when he will call time on his glittering career that led him to Miami via Barcelona and PSG.

"I know that the moment I feel that I am no longer able to perform, that I no longer enjoy or help my teammates, I will quit," he said. "I'm very self-critical. I know when I'm good, when I'm bad, when I'm playing well, and when I'm playing badly."

"When I feel it's time to take that step, I'll take it without thinking about age. If I feel good, I'll always try to keep competing because it's what I like and what I know how to do."

"I haven't yet thought of what I'm going to do when I retire. Today, I try to enjoy the day-to-day, the moments, without thinking about life after [football]."