Analysis: Messi, Neymar and the Copa America final

The two superstars set to lead Argentina and Brazil in Copa America final played at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

When Lionel Messi plays for his national team, Argentina, it often looks like he is carrying a burden. There seems to be little joy to his gestures. Argentinians, in the past, have also accused of playing without any emotion and that they could not identify with him. For all the success he has had with his club, FC Barcelona, that made Messi the best player of his generation, the same cannot be said for the national team. Though the 34-year-old had team success with the national team at youth level, the last major trophy won by the men’s national team was the Copa America in 1993. Before that, Argentina had won the Copa America in 1991 and the World Cup in 1986. In the latter, the team was carried by the genius of Diego Maradona, the player whose shadow Messi has chased ever since. The 1991 and 1993 Copa America titles were won by a tight knit group of journeymen and hard workers such as Diego Simeone, who has since built a similar reputation as manager at Spanish champions Atletico Madrid.