Lionel Messi scores to win against Canada and send Argentina to their fourth consecutive final

Reigning world champions Argentina booked their place in the Copa America final after Julian Alvarez and Lionel Messi gave them a 2-0 win over Canada in the semi-final in New Jersey.

Wednesday 10 July at 16:32

The short version

• Argentina secured a place in the Copa America final with a 2-0 win over Canada.
• Goals from Julian Alvarez and Lionel Messi secured victory in the semi-finals in New Jersey.
• Messi, who was struggling with a muscle injury, seemed to be revived and scored the second goal for Argentina.
• Argentina will face either Uruguay or Colombia in the final.

Sea view

Argentina took the lead when Rodrigo De Paul played in Alvarez, who slipped between two defenders and scored with a neat finish after 22 minutes.

Messi struggled with a muscle injury earlier in the tournament but appeared to be revived on a hot and humid evening at the MetLife Stadium.

He scored Argentina’s second goal after 51 minutes, when he got off his feet and headed Enzo Fernández’s shot from the edge of the box past Canadian goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau.

Following the Copa America semi-final win over Canada, the 37-year-old was asked about the future of his own national team.

– I live as I did in the last Copa America and during the World Cup. These are the “last games” and I am enjoying them as much as possible, said Messi.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi is congratulated after scoring his team’s second goal against Canada during the Copa America semifinal in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Tuesday. Photo: Adam Hunger AP/NTB

The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player scored Argentina’s second goal in the 2-0 win over Canada.

– The truth is that it is incredible what this group of players has done. It was not easy for us to reach another final and be able to become champions again. It is a demanding Copa America. The games were fair, the pitches were bad and the temperature was high. It’s great to be in the final, continues Messi.

The goal put Messi fifth on the Copa America goalscoring list, level with Peru’s Paolo Guerrero and Chile’s Eduardo Vargas, with 14 goals.

With his 109th goal for Argentina, he overtook Iran’s Ali Daei to become second on the all-time international goalscoring list. Messi is only behind Cristiano Ronaldo, who has scored 130 goals for Portugal.

Argentina has won 15 Copa titles and reached the final six times in the last eight tournaments.

Argentina will face either Uruguay or Colombia in the Florida final on Sunday.