After repeated failures, the footballing icon finally led his country to a major piece of silverware last week.
Leandro Paredes insists he has “never seen Lionel Messi so happy” following Argentina’s Copa America success.
Messi was a standout performer not only for Argentina but also in the entire Copa America 2021 tournament.
The FC Barcelona talisman notched up five goals and five assists and was awarded the Golden Boot as well as the Golden Ball.
The individual awards, however, probably were of little importance at the time to the record six-time Ballon d’Or, who couldn’t help but let his emotions get the better of himself as he reveled with his teammates after he finally realized his dream of winning a major senior international title.
“Not just us, but the 45 million Argentines wanted Leo to lift a title with the Argentine national team,” Paredes told TyC Sports.
“Then, to contribute something to make it happen and to be there enjoying it with him was incredible.
“I’ve never seen Messi so happy and much less for 45 days. He really enjoyed being with us. It was like a graduation trip where we had a lot of fun.
“We won, because we did it against everyone, and we reached the final. For us, it was a really incredible Copa America, a dream come true.”
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