For a little more than a decade now, Argentina and his fans across the globe have been waiting for Lionel Messi to weave his magic and help his national side win a significant international trophy.

However, when his national side has needed him the most, he has disappointed. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has failed to replicate what his fellow Argentine Diego Maradona did for his side in the 1986 World Cup where he single-handedly changed the course of the tournament in Argentina’s favour.

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Messi has featured for Argentina in four important finals- FIFA 2014 World Cup final and the Copa America finals in 2007, 2015 and 2016- each time ending on the losing side.

Left-footed Leo has often faced criticism for not being able to reproduce his Barcelona form while donning the national colours. Ahead of a high voltage clash against Brazil, fans and commentators alike want Messi to perform to the best of his abilities and show his genius on the football ground.

It is almost ironic that while Argentina are improving with every game in the tournament, Lionel has gradually become less influential in the game. Argentina were outplayed by Colombia in their competition opener and it was Messi’s penalty against Paraguay which helped them draw an important match.

However, in their next two wins, including the quarter-final win over Venezuela, the Argentine did not have a huge role to play. It is to be noted here that he himself has admitted that he is far from his best and he is not having a Copa America to his liking.

Messi turned 32 recently during the course of the competition and although he doesn’t seem to have any plan of retiring anytime soon, if his dismal form continues, it should not be more than a few years ahead.

Like it has happened to all legendary sports stars, Messi no longer produces the same kind of play which made him the star that he is. It is safe to say that his runs are selective and he passes more often than not. It is only understandable that with age he rests more often, taking long breaks in between.

However, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni feels otherwise. He believes that Messi brings much more than just his brilliance on the field, hinting at his involvement in the dressing room and his vital contributions on the pitch which may not be recorded in numbers.

It is worth noting here that before the tournament began, a lot of discussion was going on about whether Lionel could finally end his trophy drought with his national side. He has had a tremendous stint with Barcelona but hasn’t won anything major with Argentina.

Argentina haven’t won any International trophy since 1993.

Who knows, perhaps Wednesday’s* match against Brazil could be Messi’s day to remind us all that he is indeed the Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T).

Argentina are waiting for that to happen and so are many Messi fans across the world.

*3 July, 6:00 hours (IST)