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Copa América 2021 was pretty special for Argentina. They lifted their first adult international title since 1993 – beating Brazil in the legendary Maracanã Stadium –, exorcized the ghosts of the two finals lost against Chile in 2015 and 2016 and created a very candid narrative around Lionel Messi heading to the World Cup that starts on Nov. 20.
Messi, of course, was the main architect of the victory. And not only thanks to his extraterrestrial talent but also his commanding voice inside the dressing room.
Yes, you read that right. The same Messi people paint as someone who chokes in crucial moments. The same Messi people think lacks leadership skills or is too quiet suddenly becoming Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday and lighting up his teammates to get that title.
And we know it's true because we now can see the pep-talk he gave that day, minutes before the final against Brazil, in a documentary made for Netflix called Sean Eternos: Campeones de América (Be Eternal: Champions of America). And boy! That speech is electrifying.
Lo siento pero te como, hermano. MAÑANA estrena Sean eternos: Campeones de América, el documental que cuenta en primera persona el camino de la Scaloneta para dar la vuelta en el Maracaná. Sí, hablan todos los que te imaginás que hablan. pic.twitter.com/S0AP7fh7T0
— CheNetflix (@CheNetflix) November 2, 2022
Leo Messi speech in Copa America
The documentary is about the title, but everything goes around Messi. You can see how his teammates adore him, but also some friends from other countries like Neymar and Luis Suárez. And then, everything leads to the speech, a burst of words coming from Messi's mouth that summarize the union forged around this Argentinian national team.
Not even teammates like Angel di María have seen him do something like this before.
"Se le salió la cadena," said El Fideo, in something that only can be translated as "he lost his mind."
"Today, I want to thank you, boys. I want to thank you for these 45 days," says Messi to start the speech. "I told you this on my birthday, we have created a spectacular group, a beautiful group, and I have enjoyed it a lot. Forty-five days where we didn't complain about the trips, the food, the hotels, the fields, about nothing, boys. Forty-five days without seeing our families, boys, 45 days".
Si no llorás viendo a Messi arengando así, tenés el corazón de piedra #MiCapitan. Sean eternos: Campeones de América estrena mañana a las 4 am ¡ponete la alarma! pic.twitter.com/3Qulwm50Fu
— CheNetflix (@CheNetflix) November 2, 2022
Messi continued with other hardships experienced during the tournament but always keeping in mind of his teammates the objective at the end of the line.
"El Dibu (Emiliano Martinez) became a dad and he still hasn't seen his daughter or been able to lift her. El Chino (Lucas Martínez Quarta) is the same, he barely saw his son. And why boys? For this, for this moment, because we had a goal, boys, we had a goal and we are one little step away from achieving it, one little step", he says. "And you know what is the best? That's on us; it's on us to win this cup. So for that reason, we are going to go out there, lift that trophy and take it to Argentina to enjoy it with our families, our friends and the people that always supported us".
The last piece of the speech?
"There's no such thing as coincidence, boys. Do you know what? This trophy was meant to be played in Argentina and God brought it here. God brought it here so that we could lift it in the Maracanã, boys, so that it could be more beautiful for everyone. So let's go out with confidence and calm because we're bringing this one home."
And yeah, that's the same team now looking to win the World Cup.
The documentary will be available on Netflix since November 3.
