Houston:
American home advantage counted for nothing against Lionel Messi’s brilliance
as Argentina progressed serenely to the final of the Copa America 2016, 4-0, in
a match the favorites controlled from start to finish.
Argentina
will meet Chile or Colombia, who play in Chicago on Wednesday night. And they
will fear neither in Sunday’s showpiece as they look to win a first major title
since they claimed the Copa in 1993.
Messi’s
goal from a stunning free-kick made him his country’s top goalscorer, his 55th
goal taking him clear of Gabriel Batistuta’s total, and he added two assists in
the game for good measure.
His
head coach Gerardo Martino paid tribute to his striker, saying: “It makes me
happy that Messi has surpassed the previous record of Bati, but knowing how he
is, he is more happy for the team.”
Hosting
a special, expanded 16-nation edition of South America is championship to
celebrate Copa America’s 100th anniversary, the U.S. won a difficult group that
included third-ranked Colombia and then beat number 13 Ecuador in the
quarterfinals. But top-ranked Argentina and Messi, who turns 29 on Friday and
is at the top of his game, outclassed the U.S. from the opening whistle and
stunned the sellout crowd of 70,858 at NRG Stadium.
The
finals will take place on June 26, while the third-place play-off will take
place on June 25. This is the 45th edition of the Copa America
tournament. This year’s tournament is also known as Copa America Centenario, as
it celebrates its 100th anniversary. Copa America was started in
1916. In the last edition of Copa America, which took place in 2015, the final was
played between Argentina and Chile, where Chile claimed their debut victory.
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