EAST RUTHERFORD.- Lionel Messi He celebrates his 37 years this Monday, another ‘happy birthday’ that sees the Albiceleste star once again immersed in a Copa América and this year with his sights set on the final in the Capital of the Sun.
It’s not just another birthday for the captain of Argentinait is a perfect day to remember in his last Copa América match, the seventh in his history, the countless feats that have defined the career of one of the greatest footballers of all time.
From the streets of his native Rosario to the most emblematic stadiums on the planet, Messi has left an indelible mark in football books and in the memories of millions of fans.
World champion in 2022 and American champion in 2021. Eight Ballon d’Ors and three FIFA The Best awards. Two Ballon d’Or awards (2014 and 2022) as best player in a World Cup. Twice best player in the Copa América (2015 and 2021). Six times top scorer in the Champions League. Twice best player in Europe. A Laureus award (2019).
In total, 57 individual awards that speak of his life and work.
“I was lucky to have achieved everything in my career (…) My greatest prize was the World Cup. Many fans in the world wanted Argentina to be champion in part because of me. I no longer have anything left to achieve, I won everything “, maintains Messi, the King Midas of football.
Twenty-one years will mark in November since Messi’s debut as a professional in a Barça friendly against Porto. More than two decades in which he revolutionized and changed the history of football.
Of the fragile 14-year-old boy but touched by the hand of God, who arrived at Barcelona needing expensive hormonal treatment to develop physically, only the film memories of an extraordinary quality on the verge of exploding remain.
He would write his story shortly after with the culés for 17 seasons: four Champions Leagues, ten Spanish Leagues, seven Copas del Rey, three Club World Cups, eight Spanish Super Cups and three European Super Cups.
And behind all these titles, hundreds of goals and plays of all sizes, flavors and colors. Awards and more awards, records, praise everywhere, bows in the world. His star was growing, and the world was beginning to give him the best place in the history of football.
Disappointments? Of course, she had them too. It was then that the planet discovered that Messi was human.
With the Albiceleste he lost four finals, three in the Copa América (2007, 2015 and 2016), and the most painful, the 2014 World Cup in Brazil against Germany. Like Maradona in the 1990 Italy final, the Mannschaft also left a scar on his soul by snatching the World Cup from him.
His unexpected and dramatic departure from Barça towards Paris Saint-Germain, in August 2021, showed Messi at his most vulnerable.
Fortunately for the 10, the 2022 World Cup appeared on his horizon, and thus he was able to dissipate the disappointments of his stay at PSG, where in his first season he conquered Ligue 1 but suffered the frustration of falling in the round of 16 of the Champions League. hands of Real Madrid.
In Qatar he was happy. The epic final won against France will be remembered as the most intense and emotional of the World Cups. It was the peak of his long career.
But in Paris they did not forgive him for such an affront.
Messi wanted to continue being happy and that’s why he left for Miami. There, a few days after dressing in pink, he showed that his virtues were intact.
Feat Collector:
Immersed in the Copa América in the United States-2024, Messi became the footballer with the most games played in the history of the continental tournament by reaching the figure of 35 appearances in his debut against Canada.
The 10th shared that honor with Chilean goalkeeper Sergio Livingstone (34 games) since the final of the Copa América in Brazil-2021, where the Albiceleste was proclaimed champion.
The 2024 Cup could also give the Argentine star two more records: becoming the top scorer in the history of the Copa América and being the first footballer to win the tournament consecutively as captain.
Brazilian Zizinho and Argentine Norberto Méndez share the record of being the top scorers in the history of the Copa América with 17 goals each. Messi, with 13, needs four goals to tie them and five to set a new record.
Source: AFP
