Lionel Messi has long been considered soft spoken, and he is outside of the pitch. On the pitch many of his teammates have remarked his leadership skills on the teams he has played for.
For Argentina, long thought by pundits, Messi at times seemed like a fish out of water and when he was given the captain’s armband it was seen as a gesture rather than a ‘smart’ decision.
That has changed over time and all that soft spoken stuff has been put to rest with a video that has surfaced where Messi is giving a team speech before Argentina’s historic 1-0 victory over Brazil in the Copa America final last year.
Messi’s team speech for Argentina
For Lionel Messi the 2021 Copa America victory was like taking a monkey off his back as the Argentine was able to win his first senior title with the Albiceleste. Moments before the final Messi gave a speech that was heard and cheered by his teammates.
One of the main phrases from the speech was, “we have a beautiful group, and I enjoyed it very much. 45 days where we traveled, ate, and were locked up in hotels.
“45 days without seeing our families’ guys, 45, El Dibu (Emiliano Martinez) had a daughter and he couldn’t see her yet, couldn’t hold her in his arms… All for what? For this moment. Because we had a goal, and we’re close to achieving it.
“That’s why we’re going out on the pitch, and we’re going to raise the cup… So go out to the pitch confident and calm, we’ll take this cup home.”