Argentina captain Lionel Messi tearfully exited Sunday’s Copa America final in opposition to Colombia in the 66th minute with a non-contact injury, which might mark the 37-year-old’s final moments at a significant worldwide event for his nation, however he did so with a trophy as Argentina gained 1-0.
Messi slipped and fell in the sixty fifth minute, virtually instantly signaling that he wanted to be substituted. It was not instantly clear what the injury was however it appeared that Messi’s leg was the difficulty and after a reasonably fast verify 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 gained the Copa America in 2021 and got here in as the defending champions, hoping to win the title once more and keep their standing as the top-ranked staff in the world greater than a 12 months after profitable the World Cup.
Shots of Messi crying on the bench have been rapidly broadcast however didn’t seem on screens in the stadium. Fans possible discovered a number of minutes later in regards to the participant’s emotional substitution and shortly, chants of “Leo! Leo!” might be heard round Hard 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 might be iced and wrapped up. The Argentina captain unwrapped the tape as half-hour of additional time started, revealing an extremely swollen proper ankle in the method.
It was not the primary time Messi’s health was in query on Sunday. He was fouled by Colombia’s Santiago Arias in the thirty fifth minute and appeared to injure his ankle in the method, 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 final all through the event, and have come as early as the group stage. Messi stepped away from the sphere briefly in the primary 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 right hamstring at the beginning of the game,” he stated after that match. “It was tight. It wasn’t as loose as it should’ve been. But I was able to finish the game. We’ll see how it goes.”
Messi then sat out Argentina’s group stage finale in opposition to Peru, although his providers weren’t in want for the reason that staff had already booked their spot in the quarterfinals at that time.
Argentina went on to win the sport in additional time, courtesy of a aim from the event’s prime scorer, Martinez, in the 112th minute. They gained 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 as the staff to keep watch over forward of the 2026 World Cup.
