Breaking: Lionel Messi and Argentina reach 2024 Copa America final after 2-0 win over Canada
Lionel Messi's Argentina reached the Copa America 2024 final after their 2-0 victory over Alphonso Davies' Canada on Tuesday (July 9). This is their second consecutive Copa America final and La Albiceleste will be looking to make it a second consecutive win on Sunday (July 14).
Argentina faced off against Canada in what looked like a tricky clash at the outset. Canada had been the dark horse of the tournament, with wins against teams like Peru and Venezuela. On Tuesday, they looked solid at the back and even created some problems for Emiliano Martinex in between the sticks at the start of the game.
However, a combination of Rodrigo De Paul and Julian Alvarez was enough to find the chink in the armor for the Canadian defense, as Argentina went up 1-0 in the 22nd minute. De Paul took advantage of the moment the Canadian defense was caught ball-watching and provided a perfect through ball to Alvarez, who made no mistake in front of the goal.
With the goal against Canada, Julian Alvarez has now scored in the Champions League, World Cup, and Copa America at just 24 years old.
The second goal came from the feet of Lionel Messi in the 51st minute. Rodrigo De Paul was again at the helm of things as he delivered a cross right from the edge of the touchline. After a hefty deflection from a Canadian defender, the ball went to Enzo Fernandez, who passed it to Messi. The 37-year-old icon directed it towards Maxime Crépeau's goal.
The goal against Canada was Lionel Messi's first in the ongoing edition of the tournament, shooting up his tally to 109 goals in 186 games for La Albiceleste and 14 goals in 38 appearances in Copa America.
Argentina will now face the winner of Uruguay and Colombia in the final on July 14.
Lionel Messi's Argentina can match an iconic record held by Spain if they win Copa America 2024
Lionel Messi's Argentina are already the number 1 ranked side in the FIFA World Rankings and are one of the most consistent sides in recent years. With the Copa America final coming up in a few days, the men in blue and white have the chance to win three consecutive major international tournaments and match the iconic record held by the Spanish team. Spain won two Euros and the 2010 World Cup between 2008 and 2012.
Argentina ended their 28-year trophy drought in 2021 when they defeated Neymar's Brazil to win Copa America. Against all expectations, Lionel Scaloni's side went on to win the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar by defeating Kylian Mbappe's France in a thrilling final that went down to the penalties.
Now, they have a chance to break yet another record on July 14 in what can be the last international tournament of the talismanic Lionel Messi.