Superstar Lionel Messi continues to have the opportunity to conquer records this summer.
Messi will turn 37 next month. Even though he has become a “veteran”, the Argentine superstar still shows no signs of stopping. Recently, Messi appeared on the preliminary list to attend this year’s Copa America.
If there is no injury problem, Messi will almost certainly compete in the most prestigious team-level tournament in South America. If so, Messi has the opportunity to break 7 unbelievable records this summer.
1. Copa America top scorer
Currently, Messi has 13 goals in the tournament. The leader of this list is star Zizinho, with 17 goals. If Messi maintains the form he showed at the 2022 World Cup (scoring 8 goals in the entire tournament), the Argentine superstar is completely capable of equaling or even surpassing his predecessor, Zizinho.
Superstar Messi currently has 13 goals for Argentina at Copa America
2. player with the most Copa America matches
Currently, Messi and goalkeeper Sergio Livingstone (Chile) hold this record with a total of 34 appearances. Because Livingstone has long since retired, Messi only needs to play once in the next tournament to monopolize this record.
3. Argentine players have appeared in the most Copa America tournaments
If he plays in this year’s tournament, Messi will appear in 7 different Copa America tournaments, a record for an Argentine player. In the past, Copa America used to take place once a year or every two years. Therefore, there appeared two players who participated in the tournament 8 times: Ángel Romano (Uruguay) and Álex Aguinaga (Ecuador). If he wants to equal this record, Messi must compete in the 2028 Copa America when he is 41 years old.
4. The player who scored the most goals in a single Copa America
This is not an easy record for Messi to overcome. Currently, the above record belongs to Jair (Brazil), Humberto Maschio (Argentina) and Javier Ambrois (Uruguay) with the same 9 goals. If he wants to reach the above achievement, Messi needs to score at least 1.5 goals/match, which is not easy in modern football.
5. first player to win the Copa America best prize twice in a row
If he can win the title of Best Player of the season this year, Messi will become the first player in history to win this title twice in a row. At Copa America 2021, Messi pocketed the above title after winning the championship with Argentina.
Messi and Argentina won the throne at Copa America 2021 and won the title of best player in the tournament
6. player with the most hat-tricks in Copa America history
Messi only needs one more hat-trick to join the list of players with the most hat-tricks at Copa America. Currently, there are 10 players who have had 2 matches and scored three or more goals in the tournament.
7. player who contributed to the most international goals
In this category, Messi is competing with his long-time rival Ronaldo. After 208 matches for the national team, Ronaldo has directly contributed with 163 goals, including 128 goals and 35 assists. Meanwhile, Messi contributed to 159 goals with 106 goals and 53 assists.
Thus, Messi is only 4 goals behind Ronaldo. The two stars will compete in this category this summer when Ronaldo also competes with the Portuguese team in Euro 2024.
