Lionel Messi suffered a nasty-looking injury during the 2024 Copa America final, but this did not stop Argentina from going on to win the tournament in his absence.
The outcome of the encounter, which began over an hour late due to crowd trouble, saw La Albiceleste pick up third straight major trophy given that they had won the competition in 2021, before going on to lift the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
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The former Barcelona talisman, however, was unable to see out the whole game against Colombia, and broke down in tears after he was forced off the field due to an apparent injury to his ankle.
Messi did not seem to sustain the knock through any contact with another player on the pitch as he fell down just after the hour mark while the game was still at a 0-0 stalemate.
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The 37-year-old was later spotted on the bench with tears running down his face as he watched his team from the sidelines.
Messi's destroyed ankle clearly showed that Argentina is ready to fight in Messi's absence.... #LionelMessi #CopaAmérica2024 pic.twitter.com/pMTq9a6gX2
— DMjee (@Diptonil_Mjee) July 15, 2024
Lionel Messi was emotional after subbing off with an injury in the Copa América final ?? pic.twitter.com/K0sM2oXwCW
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 15, 2024
Despite the tension and stress of extra-time, Messi's sadness turned into joy when teammate Lautaro Martinez's strike in the 112th minute secured the trophy for his side.
After coming on as a substitute in the 97th minute, the Inter Milan striker latched on to a through-ball by Giovani Lo Celso to net what would prove to be the winning goal of the tie.
The side's victory also ended Colombia's 28-game unbeaten run, which began after they suffered defeat to Argentina in February 2022.
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