Lionel Messi retires from international football

Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi sensationally announced his retirement from international football here Sunday after Argentina crashed to an upset defeat against Chile in the final of the Copa America.

"For me the national team is over. I've done all I can, it hurts not to be a champion," the 29-year-old Barcelona superstar told reporters after his fourth defeat in a major final with Argentina.

Chile won the 2016 Copa America Centenario in the early hours of Monday morning, beating Argentina 4-2 on penalties in New Jersey.

After 120 minutes without goals, the decider went to a penalty shootout. Despite missing their opening kick when Arturo Vidal saw his shot saved by Sergio Romero, Chile converted all of their remaining penalties and retain the Copa America trophy.

Lionel Messi blasted his penalty kick high over the bar, before Lucas Biglia saw his attempt well saved by Chile’s goalkeeper and Messi’s Barcelona team-mate, Claudio Bravo.

The match was bitty and somewhat violent, with few clear-cut chances and many cards.

Both sides were also reduced to ten men in the first half, with Marcelo Diaz and Marcos Rojo seeing red for Chile and Argentina, respectively. Here are five things we learned