Barcelona attacker Lionel Messi has announced that he is reversing his decision to retire from Argentina national team duty.
The five-time Ballon D'Or winning superstar had quit the national team under a cloud in June after defeat to Chile in the Copa America final - missing a penalty in the shootout.
Issues with the Argentina FA were believed to be the root cause of his decision, while the team now has a new manager in the shape of Edgardo Bauza who replaces Gerardo Martino.
Bauza had indicated that he would try to persuade Messi to change his mind with less than two years to go to the 2018 World Cup and the remainder of the qualifying campaign still to play.
"There are many issues that need to be resolved in Argentine football but I prefer to help from within and not to criticise from the outside," he said.
"A lot of things went through my mind on the night of the final and I gave serious thought to quitting but my love for my country and this shirt is too great."
Alluding to the issues with the AFA, he also said "there are a lot of problems in Argentine football and it's not my intention to create another one".
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
