Can Leo cement his legacy?

EAST RUTHERFORD: Lionel Messi will bid to gild his legacy as the greatest footballer of his generation on Sunday by ending Argentina’s 23-year wait for a major title

Published on: Jun 26, 2016, 06:00:42 IST

By Anonymous

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

EAST RUTHERFORD: Lionel Messi will bid to gild his legacy as the greatest footballer of his generation on Sunday by ending Argentina’s 23-year wait for a major title in a dream final against holders Chile in the Copa America Centenario.

For Messi’s many millions of admirers, the five-time world footballer of the year has already achieved enough in his glittering career to be considered in the same bracket as Pele and Diego Maradona. Yet the only hole in the Barcelona superstar’s CV — a major tournament title with Argentina — is invariably, and somewhat unfairly, cited as a justification to delay his elevation to football’s pantheon.

That could all change on Sunday before a sell-out crowd of 81,000 at East Rutherford’s MetLife Stadium, the home of the NFL’s New York Giants, when Argentina face the Chileans in a rematch of last year’s Copa America final.

It is the third final in as many years for Messi and his teammates, who suffered agonizing defeats in the 2014 World Cup final against Germany and to the Chileans on penalties in Santiago last year. His smiling, laid back demeanour, however, masks a fierce determination to lift the title, revealing that Argentina have become a more formidable unit since suffering the pain of multiple final defeats.

Yet while Argentinian fans — and many neutrals — will be willing Messi to victory, Chile have shown that they are more than capable of pulling off another ambush. Since the opening loss to Argentina on June 6, the Chileans have improved with each game to compile their best run of results since Juan Antonio Pizzi replaced Jorge Sampaoli as manager in January.

They humiliated Mexico with a 7-0 thrashing in the quarterfinals and polished off Colombia 2-0 in the semi-finals. Arturo Vidal will ensure that Messi, Nicolas Gaitan and Ever Banega have no freedom to operate like they do.

Stay updated with the latest sports news, including latest headlines and updates from the Olympics 2024, where Indian athletes will compete for glory in Paris. Catch all the action from tennis Grand Slam tournaments, follow your favourite football teams and players with the latest match results, and get the latest on international hockey tournaments and series.