Messi: 'I want to change history with the Argentina team'

Lionel Messi called on his Argentina teammates to show their full potential to avenge Chile in the final of the 2016 South American Football Championship.

Messi captained Argentina to the finals of two major tournaments in a row, the 2014 World Cup and the 2015 Copa America. The 29-year-old was named “Best Player” of both tournaments, but he and his teammates only finished runners-up. In Brazil, Argentina lost to Germany in extra time in the World Cup final. Last summer, Argentina lost to hosts Chile in a penalty shootout in the Copa final.

On Sunday evening, June 25, in New Jersey (USA), Argentina and Chile met again in the 100-year-old Copa championship match.

Messi is on the verge of winning his first title with the national team. Photo: Reuters.

“Now is not the time to play without winning anything, because we are very close to the goal we came here to win,” Messi urged his teammates to unite to avoid further pain against Chile.

The Barca striker added: “In this tournament last year, we grew a lot as a team, and we reached the final together in the true spirit of a team. We are very happy and excited for this final.”

Messi won the FIFA U20 World Cup with the Argentine youth team in 2005 and won the gold medal with the Olympic team in Beijing in 2008. But with the national team, he has only won silver medals at the 2014 World Cup and the 2007 and 2015 Copa America.

“I want to change, I want to make history with the national team, I want to become a champion with Argentina. We have shown that we are a strong team from the beginning of this tournament. It would not be just a defeat, but a big disappointment if we lost the third final in a row, after the 2014 World Cup and the 2015 Copa America. Hopefully we can win the final on Sunday and enjoy the moment of glory,” Messi, the owner of a record five FIFA Ballon d'Or awards, emphasized.

According to VNE