While Argentina clinched qualification in a hard-fought victory against Chile (0-1) last night, the most important news for the Argentine press and the Albiceleste staff is elsewhere. Lionel Messi’s physical condition is in doubt.
While the biggest European nations have been crossing swords for several weeks now in a Euro 2024 that smells like gunpowder, the national teams of the Americas have followed suit and are fighting it out in this new, different but highly anticipated edition of this Copa América 2024 in the United States. After a hard-fought victory against Canada (2-0), Lionel Messi’s Argentina fought hard to secure their qualification against Chile (0-1): “It was a deserved victory. It wasn’t easy and it was won at the most unexpected moment. The team kept believing and attacking. Argentina, whenever the match gets tough, they don’t give up. We have that guarantee, because we have to believe in our football and keep playing. The team has taken that on board. We want the team to stay motivated, that’s fundamental,” said Lionel Scaloni. But like France at the Euros, not everything is perfect despite qualifying for the quarter-finals.
Favourites for the Copa América as holders and world champions, Argentina have always wanted to set the bar high to send a message to their rivals and thus establish their total domination in South America, at a time when their Brazilian rivals are going through a less glorious period. Lautaro Martínez, who scored the winning goal against Chile, explained the difficulties in his team’s play by the very defensive system of their opponents: “Everyone plays us tight down the field, they sometimes put a line of five and it becomes a bit complicated.” Alexis Mac Allister also pointed out that Argentina are struggling to be effective and realistic at the start of the competition despite their two wins in two games: “It was a tough game to play, in one-on-one battles all over the pitch. It was a very tough game and we came away with the win, which is the most important thing.” But beyond the collective analysis, Argentina were trembling last night and are very worried about Lionel Messi’s physical condition, who was hampered by several niggles during the match.
💥 Dura entrada contra Lionel Messi. pic.twitter.com/tqzcGyW1JH
— Pablo Giralt (@giraltpablo) June 26, 2024
No goals and a physical setback for Messi
While he has still not found the back of the net in this Copa América, Lionel Messi also seems to be very physically affected. This was clearly evident last night against Chile. The number 10 had to cope with real physical discomfort for much of the first half and after another rough tackle with Gabriel Suazo, the Pulga sounded the alarm and called for the doctors. The Toulouse defender was guilty of a heavy tackle on Messi, who was already injured, and was immediately treated: “Lionel had a hard time finishing the game alongside Fideo (Di Maria, editor’s note) and Lautaro but it was okay. I think yes it will be okay but I haven’t spoken to him yet. We’ll see in the next few days,” Scaloni explained in a press conference. Not a particularly reassuring media statement. The Argentine staff did not seem to want to take Lionel Messi off, so he stayed on the pitch. However, it remains to be seen whether he will be rested against Peru, the last match in Group A, given that they have already secured their place in the quarter-finals. Beyond the disappointing stats (0 goals, 1 assist), Lionel Messi is nevertheless still the key to all of Argentina’s matches, the central axis of Scaloni’s team.
After receiving treatment following Suazo’s foul, the FC Barcelona legend showed signs of further pain a few minutes later and began to stretch to ease his physical discomfort. The only good news in this situation, for the peace of mind of Scaloni and the whole Albiceleste, is that Messi continued to play the match without any further problems, and even had a very clear chance at the end of the match with a left-footed shot that hit the post of the goal defended by Claudio Bravo: “It bothers me a bit, but I was able to finish the match. I hope it’s nothing serious. It was at the beginning of the first match. I didn’t feel a pinch but it got tough. It was hard for me to move freely because of the discomfort. I’ll see how we go on. I’ve been coming here for a few days with a sore throat, a fever, maybe that took its toll on me today too,” explained the Pulga.
Like all great players, Lionel Messi is getting older and can therefore suffer from certain physical after-effects due to the very aggressive, rough and intense play in South America. So something to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
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