Lionel Messi calls on Argentina to bounce back from defeat to Colombia
Lionel Messi has urged his Argentina team-mates to put out of their minds the 2-0 loss to Colombia in the Copa America on Saturday.
James Rodriguez set up Roger Martinez’s opening goal in Salvador, Brazil, and substitute Duvan Zapata scored late to seal the victory.
“It’s not the best way to start, but if we keep lamenting and don’t move on, if we don’t pick ourselves up, we won’t be prepared to face Paraguay in the next match,” said the 31-year-old.
Argentina need to beat Paraguay in their second Group B match on Wednesday in Belo Horizonte to advance to the next stage and keep alive their hopes of ending a title drought of 26 years.
“This group is ready for this challenge and will try to succeed,” Messi said. “This group is strong and united. We can make it.”
Argentina had not lost a Copa America opener since a 2-1 defeat by Bolivia in 1979. The team had never lost any of their opening matches in the South American tournament by two goals.
Saturday’s defeat also ended their 12-year unbeaten streak against Colombia, and marked their first Copa America defeat in normal time since 2007. They lost the 2015 and 2016 finals to Chile in penalty shoot-outs.
Messi gave a lacklustre performance on Saturday and was unable to spark Argentina to victory. The team played better in the second half, but it was not enough.
“We allowed them to take the initiative in the first half, we were too far from their area,” Messi said. “We pressed more and kept the ball in the second half, but then they scored.”
At last year’s World Cup in Russia, Messi looked dejected after missing a penalty kick in the team’s opening 1-1 draw against Iceland.
This time around, with the responsibility of leading a group of young players in the Copa America, he sounded optimistic despite the setback. “You have to take the positives, raise your head and move on,” he said. “This is just the beginning, there’s a long way to go.”
