Lionel Messi opens up on injury “fear” ahead of Copa América final

Lionel Messi, captain of the historic Argentina national team that are set to play in the final of the Copa América against Colombia on Sunday (July 14, KO 8:00 p.m. ET), gave an interview to DSports in which he talked about his physical issues, namely the muscular problem that has conditioned his performances during the tournament. “I lost my fear”, he said, “for the final I’m going to feel better”.

“In the last [match] I lost my fear, I felt better and for the final I will feel better,” Messi assured, while also describing his physical progress during the tournament: “Against Canada I felt very good, beyond the chanves we created, I felt very good physically. Against Chile I suffered an adductor problem and I didn’t play comfortably.

“It makes you play at a slower pace, it bothered me when it was time to stand up or make lateral movements. And with Ecuador I went into the game just about OK, too. I was fine with the injury, but I still had it in my head that I had something,” he admitted.

‘Teams playing against Argentina play a different kind of game’

As well as talking about his fitness issues, Messi also wanted to highlight the difficulty of playing in the Copa América: “We know that all the Copa América tournaments are very difficult, they are all very hard. You can find yourself eliminated on a tiny detail in a game. The matches themselves are just 90 minutes and there are penalties. Not having extra time, as happens in the Euros, means that the teams playing against Argentina play a different kind of game, many will look for a draw and see what happens in the penalty shootout, as the best team doesn’t always win”.

Argentina’s captain took the opportunity to praise Dibu Martínez, who was decisive in the quarter-final shootout against Ecuador: “We were very lucky against Ecuador during the match, because they created good chances. Afterwards, in the penalty shootout, with Dibu, it’s no longer luck. You know that he will save one or two and that is a great advantage”.

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Messi also spoke about his relationship with coach Lionel Scaloni: “Sometimes we talk about anything. I’ve been a teammate with all the coaching staff. There are times, as with any coach, when you start talking about anything stupid. Sometimes it’s about training or the game, but many times it has nothing to do with soccer. He is very close to us, he is responsible for this group being the way it is”.

The game between Argentina and Colombia will be played on Sunday, July 14 with kick off at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT.