Lionel Messi, as you rarely saw him 0:42
(CNN Spanish) --
Cold chest?
Lack of leadership?
Nothing of that.
Lionel Messi is the commander of his team, of the team that was crowned champion of America in 2021. This is evident in the images of the Netflix documentary
Be eternal: Champions of America
, which opens this Thursday.
The documentary gives a lot to talk about and it is not for less: it portrays the journey of the Argentine team to reach the championship and, in addition, it shows us a group leader Lionel Messi as we have rarely seen him, with an inspiring talk and exciting.
How is Messi outside the field of play where he shines so much?
How does he handle a locker room talk in front of his teammates?
These are doubts that perhaps many have, since the Argentine "10" has been perceived as a quiet soccer genius rather than as a leader, and as someone who is described as the best soccer player in the world but without having led your selection to a title.
This is how Argentina arrives at the World Cup: favorite for the title as always, with Messi as the standard bearer
But, in the images shown in the new documentary, we see how his teammates and former teammates praise his leadership skills, and we even see Messi himself leading his team from the locker room to the field to win the Copa América, which ended with Argentina 1 - Brazil 0 at the Maracana Stadium, on July 10, 2021, which led Albiceleste to its first major international title in 28 years.
"Forty-five days without seeing our family, boys, for this moment. We had a goal and we are one step away from achieving it. There is no such thing as coincidence. You know what? This cup had to be played in Argentina. And God he brought here (to Brazil), he brought it here to raise it in the Maracana, to make it more beautiful for everyone," Messi harangues before the Copa América final, according to the promotional preview of
Sean eternal: Champions of America
.
"I had hit myself and got back up. I had fallen again. And all I had in mind was that I was going to be given (a championship). I always had a pending account with myself and with my country," adds the star. Argentine in the documentary.
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Some of the phrases of his colleagues and former colleagues
"In no final we hadn't even scored a goal. I have thousands of trophies, but I think this was the only thing I wanted", declares Ángel Di María, author of the goal in the final, with tears in his eyes.
"He was the first, first he was present and showing his face in the most difficult moments that we had to go through," says Nicolás Otamendi.
"What he generates in the locker room I have seen few players," says Lautaro Martínez.
Messi and the entire Argentina team celebrate last year's continental title.
(Photo: Buddha Mendes/Getty Images)
"He is very Argentinian. Very, very Argentinian. He has a passion for his country. He always wants to win, he always wants the ball. This is pure leadership. That is a natural leader," says Xavi, Barcelona coach and former teammate.
"There are other leaders who are quieter," says Luis Suarez, Messi's former teammate at Barcelona.
"For me, he doesn't keep a low profile. He's quiet, but very strong," adds Neymar, a former teammate at Barcelona and current teammate at PSG.
ArgentinaLionel MessiArgentina National Team
