How Chile Won Copa America Final Over Argentina, Defended Title On U.S. Soil

Argentina earned a measure of revenge against Chile earlier this month, but true vengeance remains elusive for one of the soccer world’s traditional powers and its best player.

Chile defeated Argentina 4-2 on penalty kicks following a goalless draw in the Copa America 2016 final on Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Although this year’s competition took place in the United States, the outcome was the same as it was in 2015, with Chile reigning as champion after the closest of encounters with Lionel Messi and Argentina.

Chile confirmed its current generation as golden and joined historic teams of yesteryear.

Argentina feels that familiar heartbreak, losing a final for the third consecutive summer. Argentina last won a trophy at senior level in 1993, and Sunday’s result added at least two more years of hurt to the 23 that already have come and gone.

Messi celebrated his 29th birthday on June 24. The incomparable superstar must wonder if he’ll ever win a senior international title and if so, when? It probably is impossible to come closer to winning, but ultimately fail, than Messi’s Argentina teams.

The actual Copa America 2016 final was as air-tight as the score-line suggests. Neither team amassed enough of an advantage to score a decisive goal or claim to have deserved the victory during the run of play. It’s a mirror image of the 2015 final, but this year’s showcase game was like no other in recent memory.

That’s because referee Heber Lopes was central to the action, showing red cards to Chile’s Marcelo Diaz and Argentina’s Marcos Rojo in a combustible first half. Those dismissals accounted for just two of the eight cards doled out by Lopes. A couple might’ve been warranted. Others weren’t. Lopes presided over a fiasco of his own making.

All were part of a chaotic contest in which both teams ran themselves to the point of exhaustion for personal and national pride. But neither side created many clear-cut scoring chances. The opposing defenses were simply too good.

In the 21st minute, Gonzalo Higuain missed the best opportunity of the game. The Argentina striker endured yet another final, around which his nightmares could center.

Claudio Bravo repelled Argentina’s best efforts, showing why he won the Golden Gloves award as the tournament’s best goalkeeper and confirming his status as a national hero. During the fateful penalty-kick shootout, Bravo saved one of Argentina’s four shots. Messi dramatically missed another. Penalty-kick shootouts are lotteries, but it’s useful to have a joker like Bravo in the deck.

Here’s how Chile defended its Copa America title and consigned Argentina to further misery.

Defense wins championships
Argentina and Chile were the highest-scoring teams at Copa America 2016, but they couldn’t get this far without a balanced lineup and ability and determination at the back. Unlike Argentina’s 2-1 win over Chile on June 6, the teams defended as if their lives depended on it in the final, limiting chances to just a scant few. Perhaps familiarity and the weight of the moment bred caution.

Missing number nines
Argentina didn’t take many shots of its own. Those it fired too often missed their target, as Higuain and his replacement, Sergio Aguero, failed to carry their killer instinct from club to international level.

Higuain’s early miss was tragic. Aguero replaced him in the 70th minute but shot comically wide during normal time. He finally put a header on target in the 99th minute, but Bravo denied him with arguably the save of the tournament.

Chile’s Eduardo Vargas was the top scorer in Copa America 2016 but he struggled to affect the final in 109 minutes of action. Vargas had a golden opportunity to put Chile ahead in the 99th minute, but his header went straight at Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero.

Messi
The star of the show played a good game, but his ongoing penalty-kick woes reared their ugly heads at the worst time for him.

Try as he might, the Copa America 2016 final took the same course as last year’s final and the 2014 FIFA World Cup final.

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