Di Maria gave up on participating in the Olympics, and now only Messi is left.
Britain **1 (Beijing time) reported: "Benfica's winger Di Maria gave up representing Argentina in the 2024 Olympics in order to play in the Copa America."
Messi is reportedly eager to represent Argentina at the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris after the Americas tournament in the United States. Argentina will fly to China during the break from the A-team match in March, and the national team management has decided to include several U-23 and U-20 players in the national team so that the young players can work with Messi, Di Maria and others before the Olympics.
If Messi leads Argentina to another gold medal in Paris, he will become the only player in history to win gold at both the Olympics and the World Cup.
But Di Maria gave up on participating in the Olympics. Di Maria said in an interview: "I think every time I decide, I get the accolades I've given so far. And, I think the Copa America is the last. The reason I decided to play in the Copa America was because of an injury in the national team, not going well at work, and years of pain. ”
He continued: "And after winning the Copa America [in 2021], I felt joy and happiness. If I can enjoy 100% of my national team life, I think I'm qualified to do that, so I decided to stay with the national team. ”
Di Maria said: "I will be miserable, but I have a lot of team-mates behind me. In the beginning, there were a lot of good players who followed me, so sometimes I couldn't see clearly. It's time to take a big step. It's good to win the World Cup, but sometimes you have to take a step back. In addition, there are new generations that can continue on the same path. ”
Di Maria will retire after the 2024 Copa America. Di Maria, who played 136 games as a national team and scored 29 goals and 29 assists, has recently played a decisive role on the Argentine international stage.
Angel Di Maria scored the deciding goal with a 1-0 victory in the final of the 2021 Copa America winners, and in the 2022 World Cup final, Argentina scored and assisted in a thrilling victory over France after the penalty shootout.
Now only Messi's option remains. Messi has publicly stated that he wants to play in the Copa America, and some people also estimate that he will play in the 2026 World Cup. But it remains to be seen whether Messi will be able to play in two international competitions in the summer.
Messi's Inter Miami competition is taking place during the Olympic Games. But Messi will miss just one game against Chicago on July 20. On the contrary, Di Maria is expected to return to Argentina at the end of the season, when his contract with Benfica expires, to continue playing in Rosario**, where his dream began.
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