Argentina are still celebrating their 2022 World Cup win – and rightly so.
At the end of last year, Lionel Messi helped inspire his nation to glory for the first time since 1986.
Argentina beat France on penalties in perhaps the tournament’s greatest ever final, with the South Americans enjoying a highly-anticipated World Cup homecoming in friendly matches against Panama and Curacao over the international break.
It’s taken quite a while, but Messi has finally emulated the man he idolises most, Diego Armando Maradona.
Given the magnitude of the World Cup triumph, former Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi has decided to pay tribute to it with a new tattoo.
And even Messi himself is impressed with Otamendi’s latest piece of body art.
The Benfica centre half – who played every single game for Argentina at the 2022 World Cup – revealed the tattoo on Thursday through his official Instagram page.
Here’s a look at it…
Image: Otamendi’s World Cup tattoo
Not bad, eh? As football-related tattoos go, it’s an absolute beaut.
And when it earns Messi’s seal of approval, you know it’s a corker.
Soon after Otamendi’s revelation on the social media channel, Messi uploaded a story from his own account.
In it, the Paris Saint-Germain superstar wrote (roughly translated): “I saw many incredible things made of me and of the cup, but for a teammate, a friend like Otamendi to get a tattoo like this is something more than special. Thank you a lot Ota!!”
Image: Messi’s response to Otamendi’s tattoo
Fair play, Leo.
The man is basking in the glory of World Cup success, and he’s not going to stop any time soon.
How did Messi get on over the international break?
It was yet another record-breaking week for Messi, who many believe to be the greatest footballer in history.
The Barcelona legend scored a first half hat-trick in Argentina’s 7-0 win over Curacao, making him only the third man ever to net 100+ goals on the international stage.
Messi is now on 102 goals, 20 behind his eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo and only seven fewer than Iran legend, Ali Daei.
Who knows how many the Argentine will finish on, especially if he fulfills his ambition of playing at the 2026 World Cup.
