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It is every athlete’s dream to bring sporting glory to their nation. Lionel Messi is no different.
Messi, who turns 34 this Thursday, knows that time is running out for him in this particular quest. He also knows that Copa América 2021 offers the best chance to him to win major silverware with the national team.
He seems to be on a mission in this edition of Copa America to achieve exactly that. Messi scored a glorious free kick in the first group stage match against Chile and assisted the only goal scored in the victory against Uruguay.
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He has performed at the extra-terrestrial level that is expected of him and even gone beyond it sometimes in the early running.
Argentina’s trophy drought in the time of Lionel Messi
Everyone knows about the trophy drought that the Argentina football team is currently suffering from. And for that to coincide with the playing career of the greatest footballer ever just doesn’t make sense.
Argentina’s last major trophy win was the Copa America in 1993. Since Messi’s debut with the national team in 2004, they have played nine major tournaments and have failed every time if you discount the 2008 Olympics win.
So close yet so far
They have come close in four of those tournaments by reaching the final, only to lose every single time. In the 2014 World Cup final, Germany scored the only goal of the match in 113th minute. In both the Copa America finals of 2015 & 2016, the Albicelestes lost to Chile in penalty shoot outs.
Messi single-handedly dragged Argentina to each of those three finals, even winning player of the tournament at the 2014 World Cup. This heartache after heartache was becoming too much to handle for the captain of the team.
It reached a tipping point after the fourth loss at Copa America in 2016 when a heartbroken Messi announced his retirement from international football.
Messi said: "I tried my hardest. It has been four finals, I want more than anyone to win a title with the national team, but unfortunately, it did not happen."
True champions keep going
There was a huge public outcry & he did reverse his decision. Nobody knows why Messi changed his mind except for himself.
Maybe it is to do with all the comparisons with Diego Maradona, who is idolized in Argentina for winning the World Cup in 1986, that pushes Messi to win a trophy for his country. His countrymen have always held back in their appreciation for Messi and the only way to change that is by winning a major honour.
Or maybe he wants to win over his critics who have also challenged his GOAT status for him failure to inspire his nation to a major honour. Not that he cares about being the greatest ever.
Whatever the reason, the footballing world is a happy place when Messi is playing. He seems determined to keep going with no surety of success. But that is the funny thing about sports. There is always a next time and there is always a next tournament.
There are realistically two more chances left for Messi to create history with the national team, Copa America 2021 & World Cup 2022.
The Barcelona superstar has won everything there is to win at club level with FC Barcelona, but for some reason his story seems incomplete. An international honour is what's missing from the narrative.
For football romantics, it would be a fitting end to an illustrious career if it does happen.
