Argentina picked up where they left off in the Copa America, with the holders kick-starting their title defence with a strong 2-0 victory over Canada. (More Football News)
The world champions are expected t🌠o progress with ease from Group A, and they made an ideal start in Atlanta on Thursday.
Julian Alvarez and 🐼Lautaro Martinez got the goals, but it was of 🃏course Lionel Messi who was the main focus.
Messi became the record appearance maker in the 108-year history of the Copa America, overtaking Chile great Sergio Livingstone by featuring in his 35th match aꦬt the tournament.
The 36-year-old's superb tournament record stands at 22 wins, 10 draws and&🧸nbsp;three losses. And he has one Copa&꧑nbsp;title – a total he hopes will increase with another trophy on July 14.
And while he could not get on the scoresheet, Messi, despite playing on a choppy pitch 💦that has drawn the ire of Argentina, was as influential a๊s ever for La Albiceleste.
He will probably lament some unusually profligate finishing - at least by his high standards -🅘 as the reason why he didn't mark his record-setting appearance with a 14th Copa America goal (he is, as it stands, four off the all-time leading goalscorers in the competition, Norberto Mendez and Zizinho).
Messi had a game-leading six shots, getting three of them on target, with♏ those attempts accumulating an expected goals (xG) value of 0.79 - a total bettered by only his team-mate Martinez (0.8).
The Inter Miami star led the match for touches in the opp෴onent's box (nine), and big chances (two) in an all-action display.
Canada's goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau🌳, who like Messi plays in MLS, was also on form, making six saves.
But what Messi lacked in his finishing, 🌠he made up for in creativity.
His total of five chances created led the match, and was at ﷽least two clear of any other player on the pitch. He was nine ahead of next-best Rodrigo de Paul for passes in the final third, with 27, and attempted six dribbles, albeit only completing one of them.
It was Messi's pass that released Alexis Mac Allister, who was then wiped out by&🧸nbsp;Crepeau only for Alvarez to tuck home Argentina's 49th-minute opener.
And it was Messi who put through substitute Martinez to round off th�🧔�e victory late on.
That was Messi's 17th assist at the Copa America, with his first assist in the com✃petiti𝐆on coming in 2011.
Since then, ♑he has registered over three times as many assists as any other player in the competition, with Angel Di Maria and Alexis Sanchez ranking second on five eacꦐh.
It also saw Messi reach 50 direct goal in🧔volvements in official competitions for club and country on U.S. soi🧜l (30 goals + 20 assists).
His figure of seven line-breaking 𝐆passes, meanw🐎hile, was more than double that of any other player in Thursday's match.
Argentina can reasonably reflect that they should have scorܫed more, an ominous sign for their upcoming opponents. They had nine big scoring chances (according to Opta's definition) against Canada, the most for La Albiceleste in a single🔥 game since 2013, and accumulated 2.98 xG.
Messi was at the heart of it all, b✨ut it was not a case of him having to do it all on his own.
De Paul was impressive in midfield, while in Alvarez and Martinez, Messi has an excellent supporting cast for this year'ℱs competition.
At 24 years an𝐆d 142 days, Alvarez is the youngest player to score in both the World Cup and the Copa America since Jose Maria Gimenez did so for Uruguay in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Martinez, meanwhile, has scored in four of the last five matches he h𒅌as played in the Copa America, striking in this match against Canada to follow up goals against Bolivia, Ecuador, and Colombia in 2021. The only exception in that run was the final in 2021 against Brazil.
The Inter striker might have to settle for a back-up role at this tournament, but it's now three goals in his last two matches for hꦰis country, and he could be a contender for the Golden Boot.
Argent👍ina should be con🌳fident of a deep run. They should really go all the way.
They are the best team in the world, after all, and Lionel Scaloni has, by some distance, the best squad in the competition at his disposal, what with Brazil missing stalwarts Casemiro, Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison, as well 💃as their talisman Neymar, even if Vinicius Junior is an excellent alternative.
That being said, this is the first time under their coach that Argentina have won their opening match of a major tournament, having slipped to a 2-0 defeat to Colombia in the 2019 Copa America, drawing 1-1 with Chile in the same competition two years later, and then losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia at the 2022 World Cu🤪p.
This time, they have got off on the 💦right foot. Upcoming matches against Chile and Peru should not prove tough hurdles to navigate, especially not with Messi already clicking through the gears.
