Pele: Certainly Diego is smiling now

• athletes

The greatest Brazilian football player of all time, 82-year-old Pele, congratulated the Argentines and their captain, Lionel Messi, on the title of world champion, but he did not forget Kylian Mbappe and the Moroccan national team either.

"Today, football continues to tell its story, as always, in an enthralling way. Messi winning his first World Cup, as his trajectory deserved. My dear friend, Mbappé, scoring four goals in a final. What a gift it was to watch this spectacle to the future of our sport.

And I couldn't fail to congratulate Morocco for the incredible campaign. It's great to see Africa shine. Congratulations Argentina! Certainly Diego is smiling now."

He also praised the Moroccan national team:

"I couldn't fail to congratulate Morocco for the incredible campaign.

It's great to see Africa shine," Pele added. Messi, now 35, has also rejected any notion that he could retire in the aftermath of the final. “Obviously I wanted to complete my career with this – I can’t ask for more,” he said.

“Finishing my career this way is impressive. After this, what else? I have a Copa América, a World Cup, almost at the very end. I love football, what I do. I enjoy being part of the national team, the group. I want to enjoy a couple more matches being a world champion”.

Gary Lineker hailed Maradona as the best player he'd seen until Messi

He said: “I never thought I'd see a better player than Diego Maradona and it's kind of slightly unfair to compare them because they played in different times.

But I think Messi’s done it through what he's achieved now and his longevity. Diego for seven, eight, nine, maybe ten years even was so similar but he [Messi] has done it for nearly two decades. Seven Ballon d'Ors as well. He's done them both in his mid-30s, the two big ones - the Copa America and the World Cup”.