Lionel Messi scored his 109th worldwide purpose and first of the match, main defending champion Argentina over Canada 2-0 on Tuesday evening and into the Copa América last.
Julián Álvarez put the Albiceleste forward within the twenty second minute and Messi redirected Enzo Fernández’s shot in off goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau within the 51st. Messi has 28 targets in his final 25 matches for Argentina and 14 in Copa America play, three shy of the document.
Solely Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo with 130 has extra males’s worldwide targets than Messi, who turned 37 on June 24.
With a victory on its independence day, Argentina prolonged its unbeaten streak to 10 video games. The Albiceleste search a document sixteenth Copa title after they play Uruguay or Colombia on Sunday at Miami Gardens, Florida.
Making an attempt to string collectively championships in consecutive Copa Américas across the 2022 World Cup championship, Argentina is attempting to match the feat of Spain when La Roja received the 2008 and 2012 European Championships together with the 2010 World Cup.
Argentina followers gathered in Occasions Sq. on the eve of the match and stuffed the streets of Manhattan earlier than heading to MetLife Stadium, web site of the 2026 World Cup last. The group of 80,102 on an evening with an 82-degree temperature and 82% humidity was overwhelmingly pro-Argentina, with just a few sections dominated by red-clad Canadian supporters.
It was among the many largest video games for Canadian soccer, which went 0-6 in its solely World Cup appearances in 1986 and 2022 and received its solely main title on the 2000 Concacaf Gold Cup. Argentina had crushed Canada 2-0 within the match opener on June 20.
Canada star Alphonso Davies limped off after his proper leg was caught in a clear problem with Gonzalo Montiel and he was changed within the 71st minute.
Making his thirty eighth Copa América look, Messi had missed Argentina’s group stage finale with a leg harm and was subdued whereas enjoying 90 minutes within the quarterfinal win over Ecuador.
He was simply huge from the highest of the penalty space within the twelfth minute after exchanging passes with Ángel Di María, then huge once more within the forty fourth and put a chip over the crossbar in first-half harm time.
MetLife’s non permanent grass floor appeared heavy, with water splashing and sand popping up throughout dribbles.
Argentina went forward after Rodrigo De Paul from the middle circle performed an extended move to Álvarez, who took a contact on the prime of the arc to regulate the ball from Moïse Bombito. Álvarez took one other contact to create area from Bombito and from close to the penalty spot slipped the ball between the legs of Crépeau for his ninth purpose in 35 worldwide appearances.
Messi scored following a throw-in. He centered the ball to De Paul, who ran to the top line and minimize the ball again. Koné’s tried clearance went to Fernández, who teed up a shot that Messi redirected from simply contained in the 6-yard field.
Jonathan David was thwarted by Emiliano Martínez from shut vary in first-half stoppage time, and Martínez made a kick save on Tani Oluwaseyi within the eightieth.
