The moving letter from a Scaloni collaborator to Lionel Messi: "I hope your way of feeling the game endures"

The farewell of Lionel Messi from the Argentinian National Team began to take shape long before his decision was publicly known. However, the confirmation of the end of his cycle mobilized those who shared with him the most successful years of the Albiceleste. Among them was Matías Manna, a collaborator of Lionel Scaloni, who dedicated an extensive letter on social media to him and focused on an aspect that, in his view, will transcend the titles: his way of understanding football.

With just over three weeks until what will be his last match with the national team in the country, against Benin on October 6 at the Estadio Monumental, Manna reviewed some of the phrases that Messi usually conveys during matches and that, for him, reflect a particular way of interpreting the game.

"Leo, I like to hear how you feel the game: 'Now we make 10 passes and the goal comes, calm down. Let's play'", wrote the tactical analyst, before recalling another reflection from the captain about the journey taken during Scaloni's cycle: "‘We found midfielders who had been playmakers, we started to lose few balls in the middle, long possessions, and from there, we became strong’. 'We became ourselves again'".

For Manna, this journey should not be reduced to the titles won or Messi's individual records. On the contrary, he considered that an essential part of his legacy is linked to the football identity that the National Team managed to develop during this process.

In this sense, he stated: "On this FIFA date of your farewell, your legacy (among many others), I hope is that the Argentinian National Team represents that way of playing, that style. Thank you for being a flag bearer so that this process (2019-2026) has that stamp".

Scaloni's collaborator also explained what he understands by that identity. Manna described a proposal based on possession, control of the midfield, and the search for superiorities through associated play. "A set of ideas that lead a team to dominate through the ball, to fill the midfield to be able to play with superiority (goal vs. Algeria). Prioritize the short pass, have many players approach the ball, have many midfielders enhance the No. 10s", he detailed.

In that same vein, he championed a way of playing that he considers characteristic of Argentine football and summarized that identity under one concept: "With its identity, 'La Nuestra', from the Global South, Argentina has to say: we play like this. In the best matches of this Scaloni era, we played in that specific way".

Manna's perspective did not remain in the present; he also pointed to what should happen with that idea when Messi is no longer on the field. "I would love for the Argentinian National Team, in the facility that bears your name, with the trees in the background, to never stop training and seeking that style, to continue growing through each training session, and that in 15 or 20 years it is recognizable in every match", he expressed.

His reflection also posed a contrast with the trends that, according to his analysis, permeate current football. "In the face of an increasingly physical football, filled with runners, transitions, and wing-backs (What would have happened with a back line of 5 instead of Di María vs. France?), I believe you represent that type of football, on the verge of extinction", he wrote.

The letter concluded with a reflection that summarizes Manna's feelings regarding the closure of Messi's international stage. "It will be unrepeatable to see someone like you, but I hope your way of feeling the game endures", he concluded.