“With Argentina under pressure to ignite their Copa América campaign, Messi breaks Uruguay’s resistance at 0–0 by threading a precise early cross that pulls the defence out of shape and gifts Guido Rodríguez the space to head in, marking career assist number 311.”
Amid Argentina’s poor recent form and Copa América pressure, Messi controls the tempo against rugged Uruguay and whips in the decisive corner assist, underlining his role as creator-in-chief even on a rare night without scoring.
At 0–0 in a Copa América semi-final against the United States, Messi threads an early killer pass that slices open the defence and springs Lavezzi free to break the deadlock, a trademark vision-soaked assist that pushes his season tally towards the 50-goal benchmark.