New Jersey (Reuters)
Argentina’s road to the Copa America final was not easy, coach Lionel Scaloni said, praising his players for their performance in a 2-0 semi-final win over Canada.
Canada, ranked 48th in the world, played a strong match and sought to turn the match into a physical battle, but the quality of the Argentine players decided the matter in the end.
Alvarez and Messi scored to secure Argentina’s place in a major final for the third consecutive time after winning the 2022 World Cup and the 2021 Copa America.
“It was very difficult to reach another final, it’s difficult, because we know how difficult it is to get there,” Scaloni told reporters.
“The levels have risen a lot, everyone thought our path would be paved with roses, but it was not the case at all, Canada proved that by being a very difficult competitor,” he added.
This edition of the Copa America is likely to be the last chance for many of the senior players in the Argentine national team to increase their trophy haul with the national team.
Angel Di Maria, 36, said last year he would retire from international football after the Copa America, while Messi, 37, and Nicolas Otamendi, 36, are close to bringing the curtain down on their careers.
“You know how I feel about Angel, we don’t want him to retire prematurely, we have to give him the chance to continue playing, and then we’ll see if we can convince him to stay with us or not, but for now he’s here and enjoying the tournament,” Scaloni said. “For Messi, it’s like Angel, we can’t imagine the team without him, he can stay as long as he wants.”
In Sunday’s final, Argentina will face either Uruguay, who beat them in World Cup qualifying in November, or Colombia, who are unbeaten in 27 games under coach Nestor Lorenzo.
“They are two heavyweight rivals, it would be rash to say I prefer one over the other,” Scaloni said.
“One of them already beat us, it was a very difficult match, we did not play against Colombia under this coach, but we know that it could be very difficult too,” he added.
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