Messi could end GOAT debate forever with Copa America victory goal.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from goal.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
I felt we had been robbed, that we deserved to be in the final and we do not have to be part of this show, Messi had said after refusing to take part in the medal ceremony following victory over Chile. We don t need to be part of the corruption that we ve suffered at this tournament.
Now, two years later, he is back at the scene of his previous fury: and this time, as they say in Hollywood blockbusters, it s personal.
This Copa America, Leo s sixth with Argentina, has ended up in Brazil via a succession of last-minute, curious decisions.
I felt we had been robbed, that we deserved to be in the final and we do not have to be part of this show, Messi had said after refusing to take part in the medal ceremony following victory over Chile. We don t need to be part of the corruption that we ve suffered at this tournament.
Now, two years later, he is back at the scene of his previous fury: and this time, as they say in Hollywood blockbusters, it s personal.
This Copa America, Leo s sixth with Argentina, has ended up in Brazil via a succession of last-minute, curious decisions.
Argentina and Colombia had been chosen as co-hosts in 2019 to oversee a tournament that was originally planned to include 12 teams (the 10 CONMEBOL members and guests Qatar and Colombia).
But in 2020 the Copa was suspended for 12 months in the midst of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
The situation in Colombia was further complicated by a wave of anti-government protests across the country and violent police reaction, with more than 60 people killed according to NGO estimates.
CONMEBOL stripped Colombia of hosting duties on May 21 and on Sunday announced that Argentina was also stepping down, after top government figures in the country voiced their doubts that the tournament could go ahead due to the current public health crisis.
The 2011 Libertadores marked the Uruguayans first appearance in the tournament s final since 1987, their fifth and last such title. For the visitors, though, the wait had been far longer. While the team led by Ricardo Oliveira had finished on the losing side to Boca Juniors in 2003, not since 1963, the golden age of Pele s wonderful team, had they won the Copa outright.
Muricy Ramalho s team geared up for what would undoubtedly prove a tough tie with one big advantage: the presence of Neymar, Brazilian football s new poster boy who, at 19, was already touted as a future star of the world game.
“They talk about Messi and Maradona but Brazil has Neymar, who is going to be a great,” Pele promised in 2011. Ex-Barcelona and Madrid star Ronaldo agreed, telling