EAST RUTHERFORD: Lionel Messi said he was enjoying his “last battles” with Argentina after the 37-year-old found the net in a 2-0 win over Canada on Tuesday to book a place in the Copa America final.

After a lacklustre display against Ecuador in the quarter-finals, Messi looked back to himself again, connecting with Angel Di Maria and strike partner Julian Alvarez, who also scored, to secure Argentina’s spot in the final of a third straight major tournament after their victories at the 2022 World Cup and Copa America in 2021.

“I’m living it like I lived it in the last Copa America, in the last World Cup....these are the last battles and I’m enjoying them to the maximum,” he told TyC Sports after the win in front of a capacity crowd at the MetLife Stadium.

Messi, now playing with Inter Miami in Major League Soccer, has yet to indicate whether he will continue to play with Argentina in the 2026 World Cup.

This edition of the Copa America is likely to represent the last chance for many senior squad members to add to their trophy collection with the national team.

Angel di Maria, 36, said last year he would retire from international football after the Copa America, while Messi, 37, and Nicolas Otam­endi, 36, are both nearing the end of their careers.

Asked about Messi’s “last battles” comment, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni asked for calm.

“You know how I feel about Angel. We don’t want to retire him earlier than needed,” Scaloni said. “We don’t want to feel melancholy. We have to let him play, and then we’ll see if we can convince him or not to stay with us. But so far, he’s here, and he has to be allowed to enjoy this moment.

“For Leo [Messi], it’s similar to Angel. We have to let him be and we will never be the ones to close the door. He can be with our team for as long as he wants to be. And if he wants to retire but still come and hang around, it would be great.”

Messi has chance to win a third straight major title with his national side. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner referenced veteran team-mates Di Maria and Otamendi and said that the success was validation for the difficult barren years the team had suffered.

“The truth is that it’s crazy what this group has done, what the Argentina national team has been doing, because after all this it gives value to all [the tournaments] I and the old generation have played in,” Messi said. “It’s not easy for us to be in a final again, for us to compete again to be champions.”

Despite Argentina reaching the final with some comfort against Canada, the former Barcelona forward said it had been a tough test so far.

“It’s a difficult Copa, evenly matched, with very bad pitches, with high temperatures, very tough teams, and for us to be in a final again is something to enjoy,” he said.

In Sunday’s final, Argentina could face either Uruguay, who beat them in a World Cup qualifier in November, or Colombia, who are on a 27-match unbeaten run under coach Nestor Lorenzo.

“These two potential opponents are top-notch national teams, but it would be reckless to say that I prefer one or the other,” Scaloni said. “One of them already beat us. It was a very tough match. We have not played against Colombia with this coach, but we know it could be very difficult as well.”

Argentina, who have won a joint-record 15 Copa titles and reached the final six times in the past eight editions, went ahead when Rodrigo De Paul played through Alvarez, who ghosted in between two defenders to score with a tidy finish in the 22nd minute.

Messi scored Argentina’s second in the 51st minute, sticking out a boot to divert Enzo Fernandez’s shot from the edge of the area past Canada goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau.

The two-goal cushion established, Argentina were content to sit back and preserve their energy and invite the Canadians to take them on.

It was not until the final minutes though that Canada were able to trouble Emiliano Martinez with substitute Tani Oluwaseyi forcing the keeper into action after some sloppy defending.

For Canada, the defeat ends a remarkable run in which they defied expectations and performed better than their higher-ranked CONCACAF rivals Mexico and the United States, their fellow co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup.

Canada coach Jesse Marsch said he was proud of what his squad had achieved on their tournament debut.

“What I said to the team afterwards is I know that they’re very disappointed, but I’m very proud of them,” Marsch told reporters. “We’ve put together some incredible performances, just starting our process.

“We need to find a way to expand our player pool. We need to continue to challenge our group to come together and be able to perform in moments like this. But in general, we’ve had a wonderful five-six weeks together and it’s gone way better than any of us could have scripted. There’s still a lot of work to do, but we’ve built a really good foundation.”

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2024