Messi told me thanks, I said thanks to him: Di Maria on Copa win

TIL Desk Sports/Angel Di Maria revealed that Lionel Messi told him the Copa America final would be his moment to shine as the duo helped Argentina seal a long-awaited triumph over Brazil on Saturday at the world-famous Maracana in Rio de Janeiro.

The Paris Saint-Germain winger scored the lone goal in the 22nd-minute of the final that ended his country’s international trophy drought of almost 30 years and helped Messi get his hands on an elusive senior international trophy. “It’s going to be unforgettable,” Di Maria said after the game.

“(Messi) said ‘thank you’ and I said ‘thank you’ to him! He told me that it was my final, that it was the rematch for the finals that I couldn’t play. It had to be today and today it was.” “Soccer is like this, comebacks are like this and it had to be today.” He added: “I am happy for my daughters, my wife, my parents, all the people who supported us, and for all the crazy people who came here. A World Cup is coming up soon and this is a huge boost.”