Messi: Defending 2026 World Cup title on the pitch would be amazing | OneFootball

Lionel Messi stated this Monday, just days after renewing his contract with Inter Miami until 2028, that winning the World Cup with the Argentine national team was «the dream» of his life and that he would love to defend it on the field next year in North America while being at «one hundred percent» physically.

«It's going to be spectacular, it's something extraordinary to be able to be in a World Cup, and I would like to be here, feel good, and feel part of the National Team, if I make it. I will evaluate it day by day in the preseason with Inter, see if I can be at one hundred percent, be useful to the group and then I will make a decision», he anticipated.

«Obviously, I have a lot of desire because it's a World Cup. We come from winning the last one and being able to defend it on the field would be spectacular, because it's always a dream to play with the National Team», Messi stated in an interview with the American network NBC broadcasted in English.

Reflecting on the World Cup won in 2022, Messi acknowledged that his mind was on all the sacrifices he made to achieve that success. «What I went through and what I went through to achieve that was the dream of my life, and everything became reality. What I went through with my family, my people, and Argentina», he said.

Messi renewed his contract with Inter Miami last Thursday until 2028, after joining MLS in 2023 from Paris Saint Germain. «I always said that I base it on how I am, day by day, how I feel physically and mentally to continue playing and continue being part of this club. I felt very good throughout the year, I feel happy living in Miami as well as my family», he reiterated.

Messi's idols in his childhood

At another point, the interview shifted to the idols of the star's youth, who mentioned Diego Maradona, Michael Jordan, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, or LeBron James, among others. «Obviously for us Argentines Maradona was always our greatest idol and greatest admiration for everything he meant, even though I was little and saw him play live very little, Diego transcended everything», he assured.

«To talk about another sport, the same happened with Michael Jordan, tennis players like Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak Djokovic, the three made the competition much bigger than it was. Competing for so long to be the best, being so close to each other, made everything much more fantastic», he continued.

«I'm sure I'm forgetting many athletes, but I would stick with them. In basketball, LeBron James or Stephen Curry, players who gave a lot to the sport they do, each in their own way», he concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.