Lionel Messi hoped that football has a "bright future" in India and expressed gratitude for the "generous hospitality" that he got here during a whirlwind three-day tour, which had thousands of fans jostling to catch a glimpse of the Argentine genius in four different cities.
Taking to Instagram, the 38-year-old posted a one-minute highlights clip of the tour, featuring his interactions with Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, Bollywood actor Kareena Kapoor Khan and several young footballers.
"What amazing visits to Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. Thank you for the warm reception, generous hospitality, and all the feelings of love with which you surrounded me throughout my tour.
"I hope that football has a bright future in India," he wrote underneath the video.
His good wishes come at a time when Indian football finds itself at its lowest ebb.
The video, shared on Messi's official Instagram account, includes only one event from Kolkata, the unveiling of Messi’s statue at Lake Town. There are no visuals of his appearance at Yuva Bharati Krirangan. The rest of the video is dominated by scenes from Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi. It shows Messi playing football with Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy at the Hyderabad stadium, interacting with children, kicking the ball into the stands and waving to spectators.
The video also carries moments of Messi interacting with Sachin Tendulkar at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, along with visuals of him engaging with children and the crowd. Brief clips from the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi are also part of the montage. Messi is seen alongside Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, all smiling through the tour. It includes events outside the stadium, such as Messi’s participation in the ‘Paddle Cup’ at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai and photographs with actor Kareena Kapoor Khan.
During his visit to Kolkata, Messi met several prominent personalities. State minister Aroop Biswas was seen accompanying him at Yuva Bharati Krirangan, but neither the minister nor the stadium event features in the video. In contrast, some industrialists appear in the montage.
Although Yuva Bharati Krirangan does not find a place in the visuals, Messi did mention Kolkata in the caption.
There were reports earlier that Messi would meet Narendra Modi in Delhi, but the Indian prime minister left the country on Monday morning on a scheduled visit to Jordan, Ethiopia and Oman.
The domestic season has been brought to a halt for the want of a commercial partner and the national team's fortunes have been in a free-fall following a string of poor results.
An ongoing court case over administrative issues has further deepened policy paralysis.
The superstar striker, who is among the most recognisable and adored sportspersons in the world, did not play any competitive football during the trip.
He was accompanied by Uruguay great and close friend Luis Suarez and Argentina teammate Rodrigo de Paul during the tour.
Messi made stadium appearances for ticketed events in all the four cities starting with Kolkata, where things turned ugly after politicians and officials surrounded him, denying fans, who had paid thousands for a seat, a clear view of the icon.
Agitated by this, the gathered spectators indulged in vandalism at the Salt Lake Stadium, prompting Messi to be whisked away sooner than the originally planned time.
However, his visits to Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi passed off smoothly as he charmed fans by posing for pictures and showcasing some of his warm-up routines besides playing briefly with young players.
"...we carry all this love with us, and we will definitely return, hopefully one day to play a match or on another occasion, but we will definitely return to visit India," he said after the final leg of the tour in Delhi.