Argentina win Copa America 2021: Lionel Messi’s wait for a major international trophy ended on Sunday as Argentina lifted the Copa America 2021 at the expense of defending champions Brazil. Angel Di Maria scored the only goal of the game as La Albiceleste ended their 28-year wait for international success, defeating Neymar and Co. on their home soil. The win sparked wild celebrations among the players and rightly so as they delivered on their tag as favourites for the tournament.
#Messi #MessiCampeon #LionelMessi #Argentina #CopaAmericaFINAL #CopaAmerica2021 #CopaAmerica #ArgentinaVsBrazil #LM10 Messi Dancing pic.twitter.com/7PEQ6tsa4m
— Albeen Josebh Ahmed (@AhmedAlbeen) July 11, 2021
Argentina win Copa America 2021: Lionel Messi could barely contain his joy after the final whistle as Argentina clinched a memorable 1-0 win over Brazil to clinch the Copa America 2021 title. The Argentine captain was lifted in the air by his teammates after their win was confirmed and the 34-year-old enjoyed some sombre moments on the pitch. Messi also showcased some special dance moves as the Argentine squad prepared to lift the title pulling off some neat tricks before joining his teammates and lifting the trophy in the air. Here’s the video:
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Argentina win Copa America 2021: Numbers, trivia behind Lionel Messi’s maiden international title
Argentina’s Copa America 2021 win marked the first time that Brazil lost the continental title at home. Selecao had won the title five times previously while hosting the tournament in 2019, 1989, 1949, 1922 and 1919. La Albiceleste also slayed their demons of Maracana, having lost the 2014 World Cup final to Germany at the same venue.
Argentina win Copa America 2021: Interesting facts
- This was Argentina’s first international trophy in 28 years after they won 1993 Copa America
- This was Lionel Messi’s first major international trophy with Argentina. He won the Olympic gold medal in the 2008 Olympics.
- Argentina became the joint-most successful team in Copa America, equalling with Uruguay sharing 15 titles each
- Exactly on July 10, Lionel Messi’s rival Cristiano Ronaldo won his first international trophy with Portugal in 2016 Euro. Messi won his on the same day.
- It was Argentina’s first win against Brazil in seven attempts in a knockout fixture. The last time was in Copa America 1993.
- Messi finished both La Liga and Copa America with the most goals and assists.
- This was the first time that Brazil lost the Copa America title at home.
Argentina’s win was also their first knockout win over Brazil in seven tries having last defeated them in a knockout fixture during their victorious 1993 Copa America win. This was also the first head to head encounter between Neymar and Messi at the tournament, and their first meeting since the former’s record-breaking move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Argentina’s Copa America 2021 win comes exactly five years after Portugal had won their maiden Euro title in France. The latter saw Cristiano Ronaldo win his first major international silverware, while the former sees Messi lift his maiden title with Argentina.
Lionel Messi finished the Copa Ameria 2021 as the joint top scorer (four) and the leader in assists (five) winning the Golden Boot and the player of the tournament award. The 34-year-old had also finished the LaLiga season as the player with the most goals and most assists while winning the player of the year award.
