![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193901.jpg) |
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![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193902.jpg) |
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![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193903.jpg) |
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Lionel Messi (37, Inter Miami), one step closer to the best player of all time, attended the championship ceremony with a cast on his leg.
Messi's team Inter Miami stood in front of the crowd in a white T-shirt and jeans ahead of the 2024 MLS match between Inter Miami and Chicago at Chase Stadium in Florida on the 21st (Korea time).
Messi, who injured his right ankle during the 2024 Copa America final against Colombia in Miami on the 15th, appeared with a cast on the injured area. He looked uncomfortable enough to limp his legs, but his smile didn't leave his face. Messi, who was shedding tears on the bench immediately after the injury, was nowhere to be seen.
Messi received a frame with the number 45, which means the number of individual trophies. The youth, who appear to be members of the Inter Miami Youth, stood in a line and held up a photo of the trophy lifted by Messi of all time and a paper with the name of the tournament.
Before the game, Inter Miami said "The club will host the Copa America championship ceremony, which captain Messi lifted most recently. This is the 45th trophy of his career. This makes Messi the player who has won the most trophies in the history of soccer."
Messi won the trophy more than twice a year for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina. They include four European Champions League, 10 Spanish Primera Liga, seven Copa del Rey, three FIFA Club World Cups, three European Super Cups, eight Spanish Super Cups, two French Ligue 1, one Trophy Deschamps, one League Cup, two Ricopa America, one U-20 World Cup, one Olympics, one World Cup and one Finalixima.
![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193905.jpg) |
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![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193906.jpg) |
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![His legs were limp, but his face was full of smiles'GOAT' Messi attends the championship event with a cast on him](https://www.sportschosun.com/images/2024/07/21/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-1939/his-legs-were-limp-but-his-face-was-193907.jpg) |
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According to the British Daily Mail, the top 10 most winning trophies in football history are Messi (45), Dani Alves (43), Hossam Ashur (39), Andrés Iniesta (37), Herard Pique (37), Sergio Busquets (36), David Alaba (36), Kenny Dalglish (35), Ryan Giggs (35), and Cristiano Ronaldo (35).
Messi is a nose playerWith three consecutive major tournaments leading to the World Cup and Copa, he widened the title gap with Ronaldo (Al-Nasr) to 10. Ronaldo participated in the Euro 2024 held at the same time as Copa America as a member of the Portuguese national team, but failed to score a single goal and was eliminated from the quarterfinals. Messi also failed to perform properly in the aftermath of the injury, but he rose to the top thanks to the performances of junior strikers such as Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) and Julian Alvarez (Man City) and gatekeeper Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa).
Meanwhile, Inter Miami won the match 2-1 in honor of Messi's contribution. Inter Miami, which led by Matthias Rojas' first goal in the 6th minute of the first half, equalized to Rafael Chichos in the 28th minute of the second half, but two minutes later, Hordi Alba scored three points. Luis Suarez and Busquets played full time for 90 minutes.
yoonjinman@sportschosun.com