"Crosby>Messi" "Game recognize game”: Fans elated as Sidney Crosby meets Canada soccer team post Copa America semi-final advancement

Team Canadian reached a historic semi-final in the ongoing Copa America 2024 by beating Venezuela 4-3 on penalties. NHL icon Sidney Crosby took the opportunity to meet and congratulate the Canadian national soccer team in the locker room.

Canada Soccer is now slated to meet the defending champions of the Copa America, Argentina, in the semi-finals. This will see them go up against current Ballon d’Or holder Lionel Messi’s side for a spot in the finals.

Pictures of Sidney Crosby meeting up with the soccer players of Team Canada has been making the rounds on the internet. Fans were quick to react and many praised the Penguins great for his gesture.

Back in his prime, Crosby was often hailed as the Lionel Messi of the NHL and some fans quipped cheeky comparisons between the two icons in the moments.

Following are some fan reactions from X/Twitter:

“The real goat is in the place Crosby>Messi”

“Put him in the starting xi," wrote one fan.

“Atta boy Sid!! And a fellow Nova Scotia boy scored the goal too,” commented one user.

The comments kept coming. Fans loved Sidney Crosby’s wholesome gesture and appreciated his support for the team.

“Game recognize game 🇨🇦”

“Wow NHLers cheering the team. I honestly hope this appearance gets more people excited about this sport, especially NHLers and ex legends like the Great One, Sid the Kid, McDavid, Bedard, Roy, Lemieux, etc,” wrote one fan.

“Doesn’t surprise me at all. Sid is an all world person in addition to being an all world athlete. Congrats Canada! 🇨🇦”, commented another fan.

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NHL insider believes Sidney Crosby should remain in Pittsburgh

Crosby is about to enter the final season of his 12-year, $104,400,000 contract, originally signed in 2012 with the Pittsburgh Penguins. With trade rumors and extension speculations up in the air, Crosby's future in Pittsburgh seems far from clear.

While discussing the possibility of Sid moving to a different team, TSN analyst Frankie Corrado suggested that for Sidney Crosby, staying with the Pittsburgh Penguins for his entire career would be more significant for his legacy than leaving to chase another Stanley Cup with a different team.

“Think about this: Stanley Cups were won under Mario Lemieux's watch, and at some point, the torch had to get passed on. The torch got passed to Sidney Crosby. Now, Sidney Crosby has won three Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh. The team is in a bit of a middle spot where they're not quite good enough to compete for a championship but not quite bad enough to really bottom out,” he said.

“If Sidney Crosby's legacy goes from winning Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh to eventually passing the torch to the next version of Mario and Sid, whoever that may be, that will be way more substantial for Sidney Crosby's legacy than saying, ‘Hey, I'm out of here. I'm going to go to Colorado or New York and try to chase one more Stanley Cup for my own sake.’”

Corrado mentioned that Crosby should follow the examples of Lemieux and Nicholas Lidstrom by remaining loyal to the team that drafted him and setting his one-franchise legacy in stone. It now remains to be seen if the 36-year-old will have his last dance in Pittsburgh or find harbor elsewhere in the league.