Argentina captain Lionel Messi tearfully exited Sunday’s Copa America ultimate towards Colombia within the 66th minute with a non-contact harm, which might mark the 37-year-old’s ultimate moments at a significant worldwide match for his nation, however he did so with a trophy as Argentina received 1-0.
Messi slipped and fell within the sixty fifth minute, nearly instantly signaling that he wanted to be substituted. It was not instantly clear what the harm was nevertheless it appeared that Messi’s leg was the problem and after a reasonably fast examine by the medical workers, he got here off a minute later for Nicolas Gonazlaez when the rating was 0-0.
He walked over to the bench with only one shoe on and promptly sat down, rapidly bursting into tears throughout an important match for Argentina. Messi and firm received the Copa America in 2021 and got here in because the defending champions, hoping to win the title once more and preserve their standing because the top-ranked workforce on the planet greater than a 12 months after successful the World Cup.
Photographs of Messi crying on the bench had been rapidly broadcast however didn’t seem on screens within the stadium. Followers probably discovered a number of minutes later concerning the participant’s emotional substitution and shortly, chants of “Leo! Leo!” could possibly be heard round Laborious Rock Stadium.
Messi rapidly took off his cleats and switched right into a pair of slides, taking his sock off on the injured proper leg so it could possibly be iced and wrapped up. The Argentina captain unwrapped the tape as half-hour of additional time started, revealing an extremely swollen proper ankle within the course of.
It was not the primary time Messi’s health was in query on Sunday. He was fouled by Colombia’s Santiago Arias within the thirty fifth minute and appeared to injure his ankle within the course of, although he ultimately got here again as much as play one other half hour.
Questions round Messi’s health have lingered over Argentina’s run to the ultimate all through the match, and have come as early because the group stage. Messi stepped away from the sector briefly within the first half of Argentina’s 1-0 win over Chile, later saying he skilled discomfort in his thigh earlier than happening to play the total 90 minutes. “I felt some discomfort in my proper hamstring firstly of the sport,” he stated after that match. “It was tight. It wasn’t as free because it ought to’ve been. However I used to be in a position to end the sport. We’ll see the way it goes.”
Messi then sat out Argentina’s group stage finale towards Peru, although his providers weren’t in want for the reason that workforce had already booked their spot within the quarterfinals at that time.
Argentina went on to win the sport in further time, courtesy of a objective from the match’s high scorer, Martinez, within the 112th minute. They received back-to-back Copa America titles for the primary time since 1993, with these newest sandwiched in between their victory on the 2022 World Cup, permitting them to take care of their standing because the workforce to regulate forward of the 2026 World Cup.
