As Cristiano Ronaldo, the captain of the Portuguese national team, boarded his private jet to return to Madrid after leaving his country's training camp, the Argentine Football Association was taking a different path to honor its legend Lionel Messi.
The duo, who competed for years over the throne of world football, are on the verge of ending their international careers. Messi has already announced that his last match with the Argentine national team will be against Benin on October 6, while Ronaldo may find himself facing a similar decision, but under different circumstances.
Ronaldo had dreamed of scoring his 1,000th career goal while wearing the Portugal jersey, but he experienced different circumstances during the September break, having remained on the bench throughout the match against Norway.
After the match, Jorge Jesus, Portugal's head coach, announced that Ronaldo might not start in the Denmark fixture, before the Portuguese captain decided to leave the camp following a meeting with Pedro Proença, the president of the Portuguese Football Federation.
How did Argentina handle Messi's retirement?
The Argentine Football Association tried to honor Messi in an exceptional way by keeping the number 10 shirt, which he wore throughout his international career, unassigned, despite FIFA regulations not officially allowing the retirement of a squad number.
With Messi announcing his international retirement after the conclusion of his campaign in the 2026 World Cup, the Argentine Federation refused to let his last match for La Albiceleste be the one lost to Spain, deciding instead to hold a farewell match against Benin on October 6 at the Monumental Stadium.
During the current international break, Argentina left the number 10 vacant in the friendly match against Bolivia, intending for Messi to wear it again in his final appearance against Benin. Lionel Scaloni confirmed that the national team is not obliged to assign the number to any player in these friendlies preceding Messi's last match.
How did the endings of Messi and Ronaldo differ?
UEFA regulations specific to the Nations League impose strict rules regarding player shirt numbering, requiring numbers 1 through 23 to be assigned to players included in the matchday squad, meaning no number can be left vacant.
Portugal could not keep the number 7 shirt unassigned after Ronaldo left the camp during the Nations League match against Denmark.
Indeed, Rafael Leão appeared in Portugal's iconic number 7 shirt against Denmark, having previously worn number 17, while the number 17 shirt passed to his teammate Fábio Silva.
The change in numbers occurred due to Nations League regulations, which state that the 23 players listed in the matchday squad must carry numbers from 1 to 23, making the reassignment of the number 7 mandatory following Ronaldo's absence.
