Messi: England game 'drained us' before final

Lionel Messi, speaking after his final Argentina appearance in a friendly against Benin, attributed Argentina's poor 2026 World Cup final performance to exhaustion caused by their semifinal against England. Argentina failed to register a single shot in 90 minutes and lost 1-0 to Spain in extra-time on July 19. Messi, 39, said the physically and emotionally draining England semifinal — in which he assisted both goals in a 2-1 comeback victory — left the team 'running on fumes' by the time of the final.