Copa America: Lionel Messi wrestled down by Chile midfielder in unseen footage

The age-old question in the modern football world has been, “How do you stop Lionel Messi?”

After watching the little Argentine maestro for more than two decades, opposition players know what to expect from Messi, but stopping him is a different story.

The former Barcelona star, who turned 37 on June 24, 2024, may not be at the peak of his footballing powers, but he still has an unbelievable ability to hurt defenses.

So much, in fact, that a Chile player decided the best way to stop Messi was to put him down, quite literally.

An unseen clip from La Albiceleste’s Copa America Group A win over Chile has surfaced, showing just how afraid opponents are of Messi.

The video captures the moment Messi picks the ball in the middle of the park before running at three Chile players and playing a pass forward.

Moments later, as the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner is running into space to receive a pass, one of the players he dribbled past physically manhandles the forward, leaving him on the ground in hilarious, yet unfortunate scenes.

Sports Brief has since established the player who fouled Messi in the off-the-ball incident was Rodrigo Echeverría, who plays for CA Huracán, according to Transfermarkt.

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— Out Of Context Football (@nocontextfooty) June 28, 2024