On the morning of July 15, the 2024 Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia took place at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, USA.
Lionel Messi appeared in the defending champion's starting lineup. However, the 37-year-old soccer star did not leave much of an impression in his minutes on the field. He only had one dangerous opportunity in the first half, but the ball hit teammate Julian Alvarez.
In the 37th minute, Messi caught the bottom of Arias' shoe, rolled on the field and appeared to be in great pain. With the timely support of the medical team, the striker born in 1987 returned to play.
But in the 66th minute, Messi could not continue playing football and had to leave the field after having his injury checked. Previously, the Argentina captain fell in a situation where he lost momentum.
Returning to the home team's technical area, Messi threw his shoes on the ground with a disappointed expression and held his face in tears. Messi's reaction and the condition of his ankle being bandaged and iced made fans worried.
Through the video, it can be seen that Messi's ankle is swollen, affecting the 37-year-old striker's walking and movement.
After Messi left the field, Di Maria was given the captain's armband of the Argentina team.
Previously, the match between Argentina and Colombia at the 2024 Copa America final was postponed until 8:25 a.m. to start, even though the original match schedule was 7:00 a.m. The reason was because thousands of fans without tickets broke through the security gate to flood into the stadium. There was chaos when many people climbed over the security fence in the southwest, running past security forces on duty.
