Destiny and desperation on the line

Huge stakes for both Argentina and Chile in Copa showdown

The prospect of leading his country to a first major title in 22 years is driving Lionel Messi as Argentina meets Chile in a clash of golden generations in Saturday's Copa America final.

The three-week South American soccer showpiece reaches its climax at Estadio Nacional with a dream final pitting the favorite against the host - and the stakes could not be any higher for both sides.

Messi heads a star-studded Argentina desperate to write its own piece of history by winning a first international title since 1993, 12 months after an agonizing loss to Germany in the World Cup final.

Chile, meanwhile, is anxious to finally shed its unwanted tag as the perennial bridesmaid of South American soccer, ending 99 years of frustration by winning a first Copa America.

An Argentine triumph would crown a remarkable season for Messi, who less than a month ago completed a treble-winning campaign with Barcelona by winning the Champions League final.

It would also erase the sense of futility Messi has often felt at the international level, 10 years after he led Argentina to victory as a teenager in the 2005 Under-20 World Cup.

"This generation is desperate to win a title with the national team," Messi said on the eve of the Copa America.

"As a team, we deserve to win something and it would mean so much after the World Cup last year where we came so close."

Argentina striker Sergio Aguero, who featured in an Under-20 World Cup-winning side in 2007, believes defeat is not an option.

"If this generation of players don't win anything we're going to regret it for the rest of our lives," the Manchester City star said.

After a series of unconvincing performances in the first phase, and a nervy win on penalties against Colombia in the quarterfinals, the signs are that Argentina has hit its stride at just the right time.

Messi produced a scintillating man-of-the-match display in Tuesday's 6-1 semifinal destruction of Paraguay, setting up three goals and running the opposition ragged with a virtuoso performance.

Standing in Messi's way is a Chilean team that knows it may never have a better chance to finally end its nation's long wait for a trophy.

Since a 6-1 loss to Argentina in the inaugural South American Championship in 1916, Chile has endured nearly a century of failure.

While Argentina will join Uruguay as the most successful side in the tournament's history if it wins on Saturday, with 14 titles Chile is still waiting for its first crown after finishing runner-up four times.

Chile has also never beaten Argentina at the Copa America in 24 previous attempts.

Chile's own golden generation - featuring the likes of Arturo Vidal, Alexis Sanchez and Claudio Bravo - believes Saturday represents a now-or-never moment.

"This group of players has grown a lot, it's the right time to win something," Juventus midfielder Vidal said earlier this month.

"There is pressure but we are very calm and anxious to show we are a strong team."

"We are in the final and the Chilean people are happy, but we still haven't won anything," Chile playmaker Jorge Valdivia said.

Chile, Ecuador, and Venezuela are the only South American teams yet to win the Copa America. Chile's last final was in 1987, when it lost to Uruguay.

"For us, it's a dream come true to be where we are," said Chile's Argentine coach Jorge Sampaoli. "Now we need to be prepared for what's ahead of us, which we know won't be easy."

(China Daily 07/04/2015 page11)