Copa America final: Bravo Bravo as Messi retires from national team duty

A game that was supposed to be like Santa Clara ends up like Santiago

Ahead of Sunday’s Copa América Centenario final, Argentinian sports newspaper Ole made their thoughts clear. “Today we can’t lose,” the headline stated.

It was difficult to gauge whether their front page was a warning to the players, or merely shameless bragging. Argentina had already beaten Chile in the group stages, emerging 2-1 winners in Santa Clara, California.

Yet as the game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, moved past the 65 minute mark, Ole’s statement took on an all together more nervous connotation.

For all the talk of Argentina’s stellar attack, they were wrestling with an inexperienced defence, and a poor recent history in tournament finals. 30 years on from the country’s World Cup win, Diego Maradona had already told the players not to return home if they lost. Two tournament finals defeats in two years, at the 2015 Copa América and the 2014 World Cup, had placed an extra pressure on the players to perform on Sunday.

That tension could be felt just before kick off. As Chile’s players huddled together, Argentina’s stood in their formation looking timid. With the game edging towards 0-0, that nervous tension had spread to the Argentine supporters in the crowd. 12 months ago in Santiago they had witnessed a similar situation unfold, with Chile eventually emerging victorious to claim their first ever Copa América title.

As if serving to temp fate, Messi stepped up first for Argentina - just as he had a year ago. The Barcelona forward promptly blazed his penalty over, as cries rang out around certain parts of the stadium. A shoot-out that was over in a flash, there would be no direct repeat of the 2015 final as Alexis Sanchez had already been substituted.

In the absence of Sanchez, it fell to Francisco Silva to fire the eventual winning penalty, and he did just that. Smashed into the goal, he wheeled away with his arms stretched out. In the centre-circle, some of the Argentine players collapsed to their feet, with Messi even shedding tears.

A bitter blow for Messi, Martino, and the team in general, it also signaled the last act for the Barcelona man in an Argentina shirt. “The national team is over for me. It’s not for me after 4 finals,” Messi said after the game. “The decision is taken, I believe.”

Whether this is in fact his final act remains to be seen. Messi endures a strained relationship with the country’s FA and even criticised them going into Sunday’s final. Perhaps the words of an emotional man, desperately sad at losing his 4th final with his national team, only time will tell how serious his intentions are.

What can be said, is that Argentina once again did not show up. Gonzalo Higuain missed a one on one opportunity in the first half, and even Messi did not shine in his usual way. A team that seems weighed down by the pressure of expectation, this group also seems bereft of strong minded characters outside of Javier Mascherano.

A game that was supposed to be like Santa Clara, it ended up feeling like Santiago, only much worse.

Bravo Claudio, Bravo

It was difficult to ignore the attacking talent on show in East Rutherford, New Jersey, but by the end of the game at MetLife Stadium the talk fell on the man stopping the goals, rather than those trying to score them.

Claudio Bravo was at Real Sociedad 2 years ago, but now sits in the same locker room as Lionel Messi. The duo faced each other in the penalty shoot-out, and although Bravo did not touch the ball, he got the better of his Barcelona teammate.

Prior to that though he played an influential role in making sure the match went to penalties, by denying Sergio Aguero’s looping header that looked destined for the net.

A sensational save, it was a stark contrast from how Bravo began the tournament. A reflection of Chile’s own slow start, Bravo conceded a handful of goals that were somewhat soft. In fact, so poor were his performances that coach Juan Antonio Pizzi was forced to defend his decision to keep Bravo in the starting lineup. “He is not only the starting goalkeeper, but also the captain of this generation of players, and he has given such joy to Chilean football,” Pizzi said. “He is the most capped player in Chile, and I’m sure will overcome the sadness and bitterness.”

The turning point for Bravo came during the 2-0 semifinal win against Colombia. A tough night in which Chile were without Arturo Vidal and Marcelo Diaz, it allowed Bravo the chance to shine, and shine he did.

Producing two strong saves before half-time, he was then forced to wait 2 hours for the second period to begin due to a chronic weather delay in the Chicago area. “Claudio is a leader, a captain,” Pizzi said that evening. “In addition to that, speaking in terms of soccer, he has a lot of personality to bring everyone back to earth when we have difficulty.”

That personality was vital when Chile went down to 10 men in the first half. Rather than climb inside their shell, they reorganised their formation to a 3-4-2 and maintained their composure. “Bravo I’ve already said he is a reference point for the team,” Pizzi said afterwards. “As coaches we need leaders, they facilitate our interaction between the coaching team and the players. It’s not a coincidence he’s the goalkeeper of Barcelona and he has been a champion.”

Just as Chile has improved at this tournament, so too has Bravo. Against Argentina in the first game of Group D, Bravo was at fault for Angel Di Maria’s opener, which beat him at his near post. Fast forward a few weeks, and Bravo was collecting a winner’s medal and the Golden Glove award. A beautiful end to his tournament, it not only silenced his critics, but also allowed his country to celebrate their second Copa América success in 100 years.

Referee Heber Lopes takes centre stage for all the wrong reasons

In football, a referee is only ever discussed for being very good, or very bad. For Héber Lopes it was unfortunately the latter category that he fell into on Sunday night.

The Brazilian was handed this clash, but never truly felt in control of proceedings. His eagerness to show bookings was evident early on, with Marcelo Diaz’s first yellow card arguably one of the few decisions he made without seeking the player’s opinion first.

By the end of the half Diaz was dismissed along with Marcos Rojo. The Manchester United defender produced a reckless tackle on Arturo Vidal, with Lopes giving himself little thinking time before flashing a second red card of the game.

As the first half neared an end Lopes was being routinely surrounded by players after blowing his whistle. A chaotic situation to watch, each individual man seemed eager to share their thoughts on how Lopes should handle the decision in question. Perhaps his weirdest decision was to book Messi for simulation. The forward ran into the box, and although he was not fouled, he did not dive either. Regardless, out came a yellow card from Lopes.

Interestingly, Lopes was in charge when these two teams met in World Cup Qualifying earlier this year. That night he showed 6 yellow cards, and was one shy of that by half-time on Sunday night. For those who know Lopes, that is no surprise. The referee had produced 14 red cards in the last 27 games going into tonight’s clash, with his duo of dismissals on Sunday only cementing his reputation.

A disappointing performance for a game that promised so much, some may ask what might have been if the referee had implemented more discipline and control over proceedings. The third time that a player from both teams has been dismissed in a Copa América final, it cemented Lopes position in the record books, but for all the wrong reasons.