Copa America 2021: Argentina wins star after years of trying
People
By Mireya Bauch
August 04, 2021
Argentina’s Lionel Messi won the 2021 Copa America after their 1-0 victory over Brazil in Rio de Janeiro. Eh yes! The Albiceleste hadn’t won a major trophy in 28 years.
For Messi, this is the first trophy he has won for his national team.
Thunderbolt in the Maracana: Argentina’s victory ends a 28-year famine over the country
After missing four major finals with the Albiceleste (Copa America 2007,2015, 2016 and the 2014 World Cup), the six-time Ballon d’Or Lionel Messi finally lifted a trophy for his country. The fifth time was definitely the charm.
Messi, 34, finished top scorer and passer in the tournament (4 goals and 5 assists). This was such great news that he was carried in triumph by his teammates after the final whistle.
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But the hero of the final was actually Angel Di Maria. The Paris Saint Germain player scored the winning goal for Argentina with a splendid lob after a bright opening from Rodrigo De Paul, also excellent at the Maracana. « We dreamed about it so much, we fought so hard, » said Di Maria after the match.
Neymar, he did not know how to influence the match and burst into tears after the final whistle, before being comforted by a hug from Messi, his former teammate at FC Barcelona.
In Buenos Aires and across Argentina, the national team’s victory was greeted with tears and shouts of joy, after 28 years of defeats for Argentina.
Copa America names its best player: two players are better than one
After Argentina and Brazil’s final at the Maracana on Saturday night, the CONMEBOL committee struggled to pick a winner when it came to the matchup between Messi and Neymar for the MVP title.
« It is not possible to choose just one player, because this competition has two top players, » CONMEBOL said in a statement.
« They demonstrated in each match their different qualities that make them players of integrity, with technical and tactical quality, for their intelligence with and without the ball, and their decision making, which is always decisive. »
« Both are finalists with their national teams, they have played at a very high level, being key players in the scoring rankings for this tournament. »
« Also, they are leaders when it comes to assists – the Argentinian has five and the Brazilian has provided three – which shows how decisive they have been on the pitch during this 2021 CONMEBOL Copa America. »
In an unprecedented move, CONMEBOL announced that Argentina captain Lionel Messi and Brazilian star Neymar were the co-winners of that summer’s Copa America Player of the Tournament award.
The decision was based on a study and follow-up by the CONMEBOL Technical Review Group. This is the first time that this prize has been shared between two players.
Argentina, Barça: the Ballon d’Or already promised to Lionel Messi?
Lionel Messi finally achieved the Holy grail for Argentina. After having conquered so many trophies with the Catalan club, the Pulga managed to score the first major trophy for Argentina by winning the Copa America.
In addition to the final victory, Messi earned the Copa America Player of the Tournament award, an honour shared with Neymar.
There is, however, another individual trophy that Messi shouldn’t share with anyone: the Ballon d’Or. Mundo Deportivo was very clear about this.
Messi is the winner of the seventh Ballon d’Or. He has only won one Copa America, but his exceptional performances with Barça and the breathtaking demonstration with Argentina still make him an all-time favourite.
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