EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — This was Lionel Messi’s moment to become an American idol, and instead he entered an American horror story. After 120 minutes of scoreless soccer in the final of Copa America Centenario, the greatest player Argentina has ever produced, and probably the best anyone has, stepped forward to take the first of his team’s penalty kicks in the tie-breaking shootout against rival Chile. And he missed.
He missed like David Beckham did once in the European Championship, like Roberto Baggio did on these very shores in the 1994 World Cup. But he is Messi, and they were not.