Lionel Messi has sent a warning to his Argentina teammates ahead of the Copa America finals. The Barcelona star has asked them to be careful about Neymar and keep him marked throughout the game.
Argentina face Brazil in the final of the Copa America this year. The two sides have been in stunning form this summer and will clash in the finals on Saturday night.
Ahead of the final, Lionel Messi was talking to the press and was full of praise for his former club teammate, Neymar. He admitted the game against Brazil would be difficult, especially because of Neymar. He said:
“Brazil, with Neymar, are going to be very difficult. We know his potential, what he does individually.”
Earlier this week, Neymar claimed he wanted to face Argentina in the final as he has friends there. He said:
"I want to play Argentina because I have friends there, but in the final Brazil wins."
Lionel Messi's future is still in the balance, Neymar to stay at PSG
Lionel Messi is currently a free agent as his contract at Barcelona has expired. The Barcelona star is free to hold talks with any club in the world but reports suggest the Catalan side are confident of keeping him.
La Liga president Javier Tebas was asked by the British media if he was going to help Barcelona keep Lionel Messi in any way. But he refused to be drawn into the financial crisis at Camp Nou. He said:
"The decision of whether Lionel Messi stays is not up to me – it’s up to Barcelona. They have to do whatever they have to do to be in line with our financial control to be able to allow Messi to stay. We would really hope that Barcelona can solve the problem so that Messi can stay in Spain. Can it affect La Liga? We always want the best players playing in La Liga. Neymar left, Cristiano Ronaldo left.. and we are still here! We’re growing. As far as I’m aware, Serie A have not grown as much as they would have liked. Ligue 1 in France either."
Meanwhile, Neymar has signed a new deal at PSG and is set to remain at the Ligue1 club.
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