More important man than Guardiola in Messi's life...Life in Argentina? "I'll even renew my contract for 15 years."
Jul 15, 2024
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Argentina won the Copa America 2024 final at 9 a.m. on the 15th (Korea time) at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, USA, beating Colombia 1-0 after extra time.
It is no exaggeration to say that Scaloney has changed his assessment of Messi, which will remain in soccer history. Scaloney, who had no professional stage coaching experience, was promoted to an official coach in 2018 after showing good performance as acting manager of Argentina.
Messi was a weak player in major competitions until he was coached by Scaloni. He has played for Argentina since 2005, but Messi has not won anything at the World Cup or Copa America. At one point, Messi announced his retirement from the national team after finishing second in the Copa America 2016. As such, Messi's career in the national team has been followed like a tag.
Since meeting coach Scaloni, Messi's national team career has begun to change. In Copa America 2019, his first major tournament with Scaloni, he finished third. Throughout the tournament, coach Scaloni was criticized for his poor performance, but in the second half of 2019, Argentina began to regain its strongest form in the world.
At Copa America 2021, Scaloni added his first trophy in his managerial career with Messi as he clearly demonstrated his leadership. Messi also won a major championship for the first time by wearing a national team uniform.
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Even though Messi is not in his prime, Scaloni managed to make Messi the best player in soccer history by perfectly harmonizing Messi and Argentina's players. Coach Scaloni was rumored to be leaving the Argentine national team last year, but he has settled down.
In the Copa America, which will be Messi's last, Argentina often had crises, but won again with coach Scaloni. Messi has now completed a national team career that is not overwhelming with his great achievement of winning three major tournaments in a row.
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Of course, coach Scaloni is drawing attention from overseas big clubs, but for now, he is only thinking of success with Argentina. He said after the game, `I hope we all continue this path. The national team needs a lot of energy, so it's important to be honest. "I have two more years left on my contract, and I'll sign it after telling the president of the Argentine Football Association to renew my contract for 15 years."
Now, attention is focusing on whether Messi will look at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North Korea and the U.S. in two years with coach Scaloni.
rlaeotlr2024@sportschosun.com
