Lionel Messi, where do i even begin? Growing up, I heard your name be said thousands if not millions of times in the hallways, classrooms, and lunch tables. Said at dinner tables and family reunions when we discussed futbol. Your name was guaranteed to come up when people were discussing the best of the best in this sport. I still remember when the boys would tear each other apart for their opinions on the Ronaldo v Messi debate. Seeing Argentina play against other Latin countries in the Copa America, it was almost always a guaranteed win for Argentina. I loathed you for winning against the underdogs for years but watching you play during the 2022 World Cup final I finally came to respect you. Watching that game, I already knew there would be nothing like it. The passion that bled onto the field by both teams was unmatched to anything i’ve ever seen. I stayed on my couch the whole 3 hours. At the time, I wasn’t even interested in futbol. Despite that, being with family and seeing an insane game on my screen was enough to get me to stay. Seeing you once again play in this year’s World Cup, I couldn’t hate you for winning as you worked hard to get yourself to where you are now. Messi, thank you for the moments and memories i know we’ll never forgot. Thank you for inspiring thousands to play this amazing sport. Thank you for bringing people closer together. Thanks for everything.