Lionel Messi pays tribute to Diego Maradona at the 94 World Cup in the US as he poses in the iconic jersey in which the legend scored his last Argentine goal

Lionel Messi has paid tribute to Argentina’s ultimate football idol Diego Maradona by posing in the kit he wore when he scored his last goal for his country.

Maradona scored against Greece at the 1994 World Cup – held in the United States – before being thrown out of the tournament after testing positive for ephedrine.

But the symbolism of Messi posing in the shirt will not be lost on his millions of fans around the world.

Messi, the current No. 10 of his national team, propelled Argentina to World Cup glory himself in 2022 and with tournament glory he truly established himself in the same category as Maradona in his homeland.

Plus, of course, Messi is now based in the United States with Inter Miami and the US is co-hosting the 2026 World Cup alongside Mexico and Canada.

Lionel Messi shared photos of him with the Argentina comic from the 1994 World Cup in the US

It was the same design worn by Argentine legend Diego Maradona at his last World Cup

He seems to be loving life in the US so far and has led Miami to two wins from his first two games.

He scored a sensational winner in the 90th minute in his first match – coming on as a substitute against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup.

He then scored twice in the opening 22 minutes as Miami beat Atlanta United 4-0 on Tuesday.

Messi and his new team return to action against Florida rival Orlando on Wednesday evening.

As for the World Cup, 36-year-old Messi has previously hinted that the 2026 World Cup may be a little too late for him when he turns 39.

Speaking recently to Titan Sports during Argentina’s friendly against Australia in June, he said: ‘I don’t think so. This was my last World Cup.

“I’ll see how it goes, but in principle I’m not going to the next World Cup.”