Page 14 - Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi moves closer to signing new contract with Barcelona

A person with knowledge of the negotiations between club and player told AP on Friday that Messi was prepared to accept Barcelona's offer of a five-year contract at 50 per cent of his previous salary

Copa America: Argentina beats Brazil 1-0; Messi wins his 1st major title

When the match ended, a tearful Messi was thrown into the air by some of his joyous teammates

Dreamt of winning Copa America for long time says Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi struggled to contain his emotions and "immense happiness" after he ended the 28-year-long wait for Argentina to win an international trophy

Google CEO Pichai hails Lionel Messi as 'best ever' after Copa triumph

Google CEO Sundar Pichai hailed Lionel Messi as the 'best ever' after Barca star guided Argentina to the historic Copa America triumph

Two long droughts end as Messi's Argentina lifts Copa America trophy

The trophy is a relief for Argentina, which won its last major title when Messi was only 6 years old.

Brazil has World Cup hopes dented after Copa America loss to Argentina

Brazil trusted its defense even more than Neymar to keep its Copa America title. It was a move that failed.

Lionel Messi pays his debt to Argentina with Copa America title

Argentina finally made Lionel Messi cry with joy. After losing four times in finals, early exits in major tournaments and even a decision to retire from the national team, the superstar celebrated a much-awaited title with Argentina at Saturday's 1-0 win against Brazil in the Maracana Stadium. The title ended Argentina's 28-year drought of major trophies, with Messi as the best player with four goals and five assists. The captain also broke the team's record for international appearances with 151 matches. When Uruguayan referee Esteban Ostojich blew the final whistle, Messi knelt down on the pitch and covered his face with his hands. The next challenge is to win the World Cup in Qatar next year, which would be the first since Maradona took the team to glory in 1986. Until Saturday, Messi's titles with Argentina were only the U-20 World Cup title in 2005 and a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. His first frustration at the senior-team level started at age 19 in the World

Barca coach Koeman 'confident' of Messi signing new contract

FC Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman said on Friday he was confident that Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the club

Copa America: Brazil vs Argentina final, more than just Neymar vs Messi

A contest between Neymar and Lionel Messi is how many fans perceive the Copa America final between Brazil and Argentina

Lionel Messi thrilled as Copa America glory draws nearer

Lionel Messi said that he is "thrilled than ever" at the prospect of winning an elusive international trophy after helping Argentina beat Colombia on penalties to reach the Copa America final

Stellar Brazil vs Argentina final for emergency Copa America

The most improvised Copa Amrica will have the final most of the fans dreamed of. Brazil and Argentina play for the South American title on Saturday at Rio de Janeiro's historic Maracana Stadium, one of soccer's spiritual homes. It should be a memorable ending to a tournament plagued by setbacks and moved at the last minute to one of the countries hardest-hit by COVID-19. Neymar's Brazil team, the defending champions, and Lionel Messi's challengers have won a combined seven World Cups and 23 continental titles. The Argentine star wants to lift his first major trophy with his country, which hasn't won any since 1993. Messi played and lost the Copa America finals of 2007, 2015 and 2016 and the 2014 World Cup the latter against Germany at the Maracana. What I want the most is to win a title with the national team," captain Messi said after Tuesday's 3-2 penalty shootout victory against Colombia in the semifinal. We aim high, we managed to get the first objective, which was to play th

Argentina advances on penalties to Copa America final against Brazil

It will be Lionel Messi's Argentina against Neymar's Brazil in the Copa America final on Saturday at the historic Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro

Argentina trusting Messi to find answer to Ospina's Colombia

Argentina will continue to trust that Lionel Messi finds a way to overcome Colombia goalkeeper David Ospina at Man Garrincha Stadium in Brasilia to return to the Copa America final.

Argentina beats Ecuador at Copa, plays Colombia in semifinal

Lionel Messi scored his 76th international goal and is now only one shy of Pele for the South American record as Argentina beat Ecuador 3-0 to progress to the semifinals of the Copa America

Club Football: Barcelona's finances holding up new Lionel Messi contract

Barcelona's poor finances have become the stumbling block to getting Lionel Messi to sign another contract, according to club president Joan Laporta.

Lionel Messi becomes free agent as Barcelona contract expired on June 30

Argentine striker Lionel Messi has finally become a free agent after his contract with Barcelona expired on June 30

Messi breaks Argentina's record for caps at Copa America win

Lionel Messi became Argentina's most capped international player, marking the occasion with two goals as he led his national team to a 4-1 win over Bolivia at the Copa America. The 34-year-old Messi's 148th appearance for Argentina beat the mark previously held by retired defender Javier Mascherano. His two goals and one assist helped Argentina ensure top spot in Group A, setting up a quarterfinal against Ecuador on Saturday. Messi made his Argentina debut in 2005 in a 2-1 win in a friendly against Hungary. He was sent off during that match after hitting a rival with his elbow. The Barcelona striker, who holds the all-time Argentina high of 75 goals, is also seeking to break two South American records: Pele's as the top goal scorer of a national team (77 for Brazil), and Chile's Sergio Livingstone mark of 34 for most Copa America appearances (Messi has 31). Diego Maradona scored 32 goals in 87 matches for Argentina, including the 1986 World Cup triumph. Messi, despite his impressi

Messi dominates Copa America group stage with Argentina

Lionel Messi is used to being No. 1 with Barcelona. Hours before his contract with the club was due to expire, he was getting that kind of feeling while wearing the Argentina shirt at Copa America. The 34-year-old Messi has some of the best statistics so far at the South American championship. He capped the group stage on Monday with two goals and an assist in Argentina's 4-1 win over Bolivia. Messi's contract with Barcelona ends on June 30 after 17 seasons. The Argentine forward won a record six Balon d'Or awards at the Catalan club, where he's the all-time leading scorer with 672 goals in 778 appearances. But he's yet to lift a major title with his national team. Messi leads the Copa America scoring list with three goals in four matches. He gave two assists, as many as Brazil's Neymar. Sports data site SofaScore places him on top in the tournament so far in successful dribbles (21), shots on target (10), total duels won (40) and goals from outside of the box (2). There was some

Copa America bracket favors Brazil; Argentina spots Uruguay

Defending champion Brazil may have the smoothest path to the final of the Copa America tournament it is hosting. The hottest competition could be on the other side of the draw, where arch rivals Argentina and Uruguay have the chance to meet in the semifinals. The knockout stage of the Copa America was finalized Tuesday after the last two matches in Group A. Argentina beat Bolivia 4-1 to ensure it finished atop the group, setting up a game against Ecuador in the quarterfinals. Ecuador is yet to win in the tournament, but held Brazil to a 1-1 draw on Sunday and is in third position in South American World Cup qualifiers. We have the utmost respect for Ecuador, they have proven to be a good, young and dynamic team that will sure give us a war, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said. If Lionel Messi's lineup beats Ecuador, coached by Argentine Gustavo Alfaro, its semifinal will be against either Uruguay or Colombia. That head-to-head showdown has produced great encounters recently, incl

Copa America: Messi stars in record-breaking appearance for Argentina

Lionel Messi rose to the occasion as Argentina defeated Bolivia in the ongoing Copa America here at the Arena Pantanal.Messi scored two goals as Argentina defeated Bolivia 4-1 to finish at the top of Group A in the ongoing Copa America with 10 points from four games. The side will now lock horns against Ecuador in the quarterfinals on Sunday.As he stepped onto the field to play against Bolivia, Messi broke Argentina's record for most national team caps. This was the 148th time that Messi walked out to the pitch to represent Argentina.Messi went past Javier Mascherano to achieve the feat. In the game, Messi scored two goals in the 33rd and 42nd minutes respectively.In the game against Bolivia, Alejandro Dario Gomez had opened the scoring for Argentina as he netted the ball into the goalpost in the 6th minute.Bolivia did manage to score one goal in the 60th minute as Erwin Saavedra got the better of Argentina goalkeeper Franco Armani.Lautaro Martinez scored the final goal for Argentina .