Argentina captain Lionel Messi has shared an emotional tribute to his late father, Jorge, and suggested he may step away from soccer. This was reported by infohub.kz.
In a post on social media, Messi wrote: "I don't know what I'm going to do without you. I don't know how to keep going. All I ever did was play soccer, and now I have serious doubts about whether I'll keep doing it for much longer."
Jorge Messi played a fundamental role in his son's career, serving as his agent and managing his business affairs. He died on Saturday at the age of 68.
Messi led Argentina to a runner-up finish in this summer's World Cup. In the team's first match, against Algeria, he was visibly emotional after scoring the first of his three goals. He later said he wept for "a reason unrelated to sports."
The post continued: "You asked me to play in this last World Cup so many times and just before it started was when you took a turn for the worse. It was the first time you weren't going to be at the tournament. But mom kept telling me that you were going to get better and that you'd be well enough to travel. I kept telling you that we were going to make it to the final so you could travel."
It added that Messi "wanted to win it" for his father, but "couldn't." "My legs had nothing left. This time I tried to push beyond what my body could handle, but I couldn't. I never managed to feel right," he wrote.
Messages of support for the Messi family have poured in over recent days. Messi returned to his native Argentina and missed his MLS club Inter Miami's recent Leagues Cup match against Monterrey.
Inter Miami concludes the group phase of the tournament Wednesday night against León, though coach Guillermo Hoyos said there is no timetable for Messi's return.