MOSCOW, June 13. /TASS/. Lionel Messi will not play in the Olympic Games with Argentina in Paris this summer and he has already told Argentina coach Javier Mascherano about his decision, the Mundo Deportivo newspaper quoted the star footballer as saying.

"I talked to Mascherano, and the truth is we both understood the situation," Messi said. "It’s hard because we are in Copa America. It would be two, three straight months of not being with the club, and more than anything I'm not at an age to be in everything. I have to make choices carefully, and it would be too much to play two consecutive tournaments," he explained.

Lionel Messi, 36, played for Barcelona FC from 2003 and 2021, winning 10 La Liga titles, eight Spanish Super Cups, seven Copa del Rey titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, three UEFA Super Cups, and three FIFA Club World Cups. From 2021 to 2023, he played for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), winning two French Ligue 1 titles and the French Super Cup. Currently, he plays for Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami. In 2023, Messi received the Ballon d’Or for the eighth time, awarded to the best player of the year.

Players under 23 years of age can play in the men’s football tournament in Summer Olympics, with each team being allowed a maximum of three overage players in the squad. At the Paris Olympics, the men’s tournament will be held from July 24 to August 9.