Saint Petersburg (ANTARA News) - Berstatus pemain terbaik dunia lima kali, ternyata tidak menjamin Lionel Messi akan membawa kesuksesan bagi tim nasional Argentina.

Lionel Messi harus merasakan patah hati untuk kesekian kali saat tim nasional berjulukan Albiceleste (putih dan biru langit, sesuai kostum utamanya) tidak mampu berbicara banyak di level internasional seusai disingkirkan Prancis 4-3 pada 16 besar Piala Dunia 2018 di Rusia, Sabtu (30/6).

Dalam Piala Dunia kali ini, Messi bahkan baru satu kali mencetak gol, yakni ke gawang Nigeria pada 27 Juni 2018.

Dikenal sebagai salah seorang pemain terbesar, bintang Barcelona itu masih dipandang sebelah mata oleh sebagian kalangan di Argentina, bilamana dibandingkan kiprah Diego Maradona yang memimpin Argentina mengangkat trofi Piala Dunia 1986.

Messi, yang genap berusia 31 tahun pada pekan lalu, pun tidak mampu mewujudkan harapan warga Argentina yang ingin melihat negaranya kembali meraih piala pada turnamen besar itu.

Berikut daftar kekecewaan Messi bersama Argentina, dilansir AFP:

Piala Dunia 2018

Messi memulai Piala Dunia 2018 secara buruk karena gagal mengeksekusi penalti pada laga pertama fase grup melawan Islandia yang berakhir 1-1.

Striker Barcelona itu tertunduk lesu di lapangan saat Argentina dihajar Kroasia 0-3, sebelum memastikan fase 16 besar lewat kemenangan dramatis atas Nigeria 2-1 saat Messi menciptakan gol pembuka.

Meski punya andil dalam dua dari tiga gol Argentina ke gawang Prancis di babak 16 besar, namun Messi kalah dari striker 19 tahun Kylian Mbappe, yang mencetak dua gol untuk mengantar Les Blues ke perempat final.

Baca juga: Mbappe pahlawan kemenangan Prancis yang menyamai rekor Pele

Copa America Centenario 2016

Messi merupakan pemain yang jarang menunjukkan sikap-sikap emosional. Namun, ia menangis tidak terkendali saat tendangan penaltinya melayang ke atas gawang yang membuat Argentina kalah kedua kalinya dalam duel adu penalti melawan Chile di final Copa Amerika.

Dengan emosi yang tinggi, Messi mengumumkan pensiun dari tim nasional Argentina yang gagal di di partai puncak dalam tiga tahun berturut-turut.

"Saya sudah melakukan semua yang saya bisa. Sungguh menyakitkan tidak menjadi juara," kata Messi pada saat itu, kemudian menarik keputusan itu dua bulan setelahnya.

"Kami harus memperbaiki banyak hal di sepak bola Argentina, tetapi saya lebih suka melakukan ini dari dalam dan tidak mengkritik dari luar," katanya.

Piala Dunia 2014

Kegagalan pertama dari tiga kekalahan beruntun Argentina terjadi pada empat tahun lalu pada Piala Dunia 2014 di Brasil.

Messi yang mencetak empat gol dan mencetak penalti pada laga semifinal melawan Belanda berhasil membawa Argentina ke final Piala Dunia untuk pertama kalinya dalam 24 tahun.

Namun, Messi kehilangan tenaganya saat melakoni laga final melawan Jerman. Argentina pun kalah 0-1 dari Der Panzer lewat gol Mario Gotze pada babak perpanjangan waktu.

Piala Dunia 2010

Messi tiba di Afrika Selatan sebagai bintang muda yang baru saja meraih pemain terbaik dunia. Ia menjadi tumpuan utama Argentina yang kala itu dilatih veteran sekaligus ang mega bintang Diego Maradona.

Albiceleste melewati fase grup dengan baik kemudian mengalahkan Meksiko 3-1 di babak 16 besar. Meskipun Messi tidak mencetak gol, namun ia menjadi pengumpan yang baik untuk gol-gol Gonzalo Higuain, Carlos Tevez dan Sergio Aguero.

Kurangnya pengalaman taktik Diego Maradona akhirnya terungkap pada babak perempat final saat Argentina dihabisi Jerman 0-4 di Cape Town, berkat gol-gol Thomas Mueller, Arne Friedrich dam dua gol Miroslav Klose, demikian AFP.
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© 2018 AFP

Messi's disappointments with Argentina

SAINT PETERSBURG (AFP) -
Five-time World Player of the Year Lionel Messi suffered more World Cup heartbreak with Argentina as he was no match for France's firepower in a thrilling 4-3 World Cup last-16 defeat on Saturday.

Widely considered one of the greatest players ever, the Barcelona star is still looked upon unfavourably by many in his homeland compared to Diego Maradona, who led Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986. Messi turned 31 last week and his best chance of ending Argentina's 25-year wait to win a major tournament may now be gone.

Here, AFP Sport looks at Messi's biggest disappointments with Argentina.

World Cup 2018

Messi's World Cup got off to the worst possible start when he missed a penalty in Argentina's opening game, which ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw with tournament debutants Iceland.

He was then largely bypassed in a 3-0 thrashing by Croatia that put Argentina on the brink of an embarrassing group stage exit.

Messi did ride to their rescue with a superb opening goal to help squeeze past Nigeria 2-1 to set up a meeting with France.

But despite setting up two of his side's three goals, Messi could only watch from afar as 19-year-old Kylian Mbappe exposed Argentina's fragile defence by scoring twice and winning a penalty in a seven-goal thriller in Kazan to announce himself as a potential successor to Messi's throne as the world's best.

Copa America Centenario 2016

Not prone to showing his emotions, Messi sobbed uncontrollably after blasting his penalty over the bar as Argentina lost a second Copa America final in as many years in a shootout to Chile.

In the aftermath, with emotions running high, Messi announced his retirement from international football on the back of three final defeats in three consecutive years.

"I've done all I can. It hurts not to be a champion," Messi said at the time.

Less than two months later he reversed that decision. "We need to fix many things in Argentinian football, but I prefer to do this from inside and not criticise from outside," he said.

World Cup 2014

The first of those three final defeats came on the biggest stage of all and by the finest of margins in Brazil four years ago.

Messi scored four goals and converted his spot-kick in a semi-final shootout against the Netherlands to lead Argentina to a first World Cup final in 24 years.

However, at the end of a rare injury-plagued season at Barcelona, he was limited to short bursts of energy to try and change games and ultimately ran out of steam in a 1-0 extra-time defeat by Germany.

Messi had one great chance that he would normally bury on his left foot that slipped just wide, but even winning the Golden Ball for the best player of the tournament did little to dim the pain of getting so close to the holy grail of following in Maradona's footsteps.

World Cup 2010

Fresh from being crowned as the world's best player for the first time, Messi arrived in South Africa as the star attraction of a top-heavy Argentina under Maradona's management.

Early on, the Albiceleste's sheer firepower proved too much as they eased past Nigeria, South Korea and Greece in the group stage before beating Mexico 3-1 in the last 16.

Messi failed to get on the scoresheet, but was still pulling the strings for Gonzalo Higuain, Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero.

Yet, Maradona's lack of tactical nous was finally exposed as a young Germany side that would reach its peak four years later ran riot 4-0 in the quarter-finals in Cape Town.