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It was once again the same old story for the Albiceleste as they found themselves knocked out of another major tournament.
Coming into the match after stuttering through to the semi-finals, Argentina looked far from the side that reached the finals of the Copa America in the previous two editions.
Brazil took the lead in the 19th minute after Roberto Firmino found Gabriel Jesus unmarked in the penalty box to score the first goal. The Manchester City man then returned the favour in the 71st minute to give Brazil a 2-0 victory over their arch-rivals and march into the finals of the Copa America.
#3 Argentina needs a squad overhaul
The Argentina side that has peaked in the tournaments prior to the 2018 World Cup has been based on the platform build by their title-winning U-20 side of 2005 and 2007. The core of that side formed by Messi, Aguero, Di Maria and all have now entered their early thirties with some of them now out of the international scene.
The ones that remain, apart from Aguero and Messi, have started to fade away. On the contrary, their arch nemesis has gone from strength to strength after the end of one of their own golden eras.
The gulf in class between the sides was strikingly evident with a young and hungry Brazilian side taking Argentina for a spin. Apart from Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero, the Argentine squad had no other player on par with or even above the class of the Brazilians players (Di Maria is a big name who has been far from his best).
The defence and the midfield of the Albiceleste look centuries away from nearing the class that oozed out from the Brazilian lineup. No single player, other than Nicolas Otamendi, could be even compared to the Brazilian defence.
The midfield is the most recent worry for Argentina, despite the presence of Leandro Paredes, Giovanni Lo Celso and Angel Di Maria. The Albicelste have no other options on par with these names to add to their midfield.
The attacking department is the only place where Argentina still hold their monopoly with Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero. Lautaro Martinez and Paulo Dybala are looking like potential replacements for the ageing legends, but they are still far away from possessing the quality of the veterans.
Of the players that failed to make the list, only Mauro Icardi looks good enough to join the national side.
The Argentinian FA will need to find ample replacements quickly for their ageing superstars if the Albiceleste is to break their trophyless streak.
#2 Lionel Messi and Argentina have their best match of the Copa America, but find themselves on the other side of luck
Prior to the match, Argentina and Lionel Messi had luck on their side as they somehow managed to get past the group stages and through to the semi-finals.
This time though, Lady Luck was on the other side. The Argentine defence, midfield and attack gelled together at the exact moment but could not muster up a challenge to match their Brazilian counterparts.
The goal post first came to the rescue for the Selecao in the 30th minute as Lionel Messi produced an impressive freekick to find Sergio Aguero. But the Manchester City striker's shot looped over Alisson and ended up hitting the upper side of the goal post and bounce back.
The luck was yet again against the Albicelste, this time with Messi at the thick of things. In the 57th minute, the Barcelona man collected the loose ball after the shot from Lautaro Martinez was blocked onto the path of the captain.
Messi made a good connection on the half volley, but found his shot coming off the side of the post. The 32-year old then kept the ball alive and flashed a low cross right across the face of goal but yet again found no Argentina player.
Messi once again had the luck against him as he found Alisson on the other side off the post after brilliantly curling the ball away from the Brazilian wall in a position similar to where he scored against the Brazilian in the Champions League semi-finals.
The Unlucky night for Argentina was rounded off in the 71st minute by a goal from Roberto Firmino. A mixture of sheer persistence and luck proved to be the making of the second goal for Brazil.
Gabriel Jesus advancing through on goal had luck on his side after a 50-50 challenge from Pezzela found the ball at the Manchester City striker's feet. The 22-year old once again had lady luck smiling at him as he fended off challenge from Nicolas Otamendi and set up Firmino.
The Liverpool man had luck on his side after a slightly mishit shot found the back of the net to give Brazil the second goal.
#1 Argentina once again fails to convert big chances
It was once again the same scenario for the Albiceleste. The South American powerhouse once again found their shooting boots missing when they needed them the most.
The Albiceleste had the best chance in the opening 15 minutes but Leandro Paredes shot from distance went just over the post.
The Albiceleste went a goal down within the next five minutes but missed their first glorious chance of the evening in the 30th minute.
An inch-perfect pass from Lionel Messi was met by the head of Sergio Aguero but the ball bounced off the goal post. With the ball up in the air and an open goal gaping the Albicelste could not find anyone to nod the ball into the net.
Sergio Aguero was at the thick of things yet again as the Manchester City man found his shot blocked by veteran centre back Thiago Silva.
The second half though started much brightly for the Albiecelste. The two-time World Cup winners enjoyed much more time on the ball as they looked to find the equalizer.
In the 57th minute, the Albicelste was provided with the best chance of the match as Lionel Messi's shot bounced off the post. The Barcelona man kept the ball alive but failed to find any teammates after squaring a ball across the face of the Brazilian goal.
Chances kept on coming for the Albiceleste as the Brazilian defence somehow managed to keep them at bay.
The Albiceleste though found themselves out of the match as Brazil scored their second of the night to knock out Argentina from yet another international tournament.
