Key events
Lionel Scaloni: “We’re talking about things that are already over. [Winning the World Cup and the Copa América] was a lot of fun, but it’s over,” the Argentine manager said at Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. “Football matches are all different, there are no easier matches than others. Many things can happen. The difficulty of France, Brazil or Canada may be the same. As always, it will be a difficult Copa América, we are prepared for what is to come. We are doing well, with clear ideas and knowing how difficult this tournament is.”
He added: “Besides the titles, we enjoyed a lot. It’s a pleasure to see how [the players] give everything. That means you can achieve things. We showed that even if we didn’t win like we did in 2019, we could continue and show that you can do things.”
Line-up Argentina vs Canada
Argentina
XI: Damian Martinez, Acuna, Molina, Romero, Lisandro Martinez, De Paul, Paredes, Mac Allister, Messi, Di Maria, Alvarez
subtitles: Armani, Rulli, Otamendi, Tagliafico, Pezzella, Lucas Martinez, Montiel, Rodriguez, Lo Celso, Palacios, Fernandez, Carboni, Lautaro Martinez, Gonzalez, Garnacho
Canada
XI: Crepeau, Davies, Cornelius, Johnston, Bombito, Stephen Eustaquio, Millar, Buchanan, Kone, Larin, David
subtitles: McGill, St. Clair, Laryea, Miller, Waterman, Hiebert, De Fougerolles, Piette, Osorio, Choiniere, Ahmed, Bair, Shaffelburg, Oluwaseyi, Russell-Rowe
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium for tonight’s opening match of the Copa América between Argentina and Canada. A sell-out crowd of more than 70,000 is expected as La Albiceleste launch their title defense in what could be 36-year-old Lionel Messi’s final act with the national team.
The Copa América is the most prestigious trophy a South American country can win outside the World Cup and although the competition is traditionally reserved for the ten countries of Conmebol, organizers have occasionally expanded the field for special guest teams. This year’s tournament brings together ten South American teams and six from North and Central America and the Caribbean in the second Copa hosted by the United States and the first since the 2016 Centenario edition.
Argentina, the reigning World Cup and Copa America champions led by Messi, Alexis Mac Allister and Lautaro Martinez, have won the title a total of fifteen times, the most ever, tied with Uruguay and more than third-placed Brazil (nine). Paraguay, Chile and Peru (two each) are the only other countries to have won it more than once.
Lionel Scaloni’s side will be the big favorites tonight against a Canadian team making their debut in the competition led by Alphonso Davies, Tajon Buchanan and Jonathan David.
Atlanta is an underrated football hotbed and the scene tonight promises to be a firecracker. At one point, Atlanta United FC’s rise was among the top 15 of any club in the world; Last year’s average of 47.526 dropped from that level, but was still the highest of any team outside Europe apart from China’s Beijing Guoan.
Kick-off is at noon and we will return with the team sheets as soon as they are distributed.
Bryan will be here soon. In the meantime, here are our writers’ predictions for the tournament champions:
Argentina. Lionel Messi may no longer be the best player in the world, but he is still among the best players in this tournament. Combine his outstanding brilliance with a team that has proven they can win tournaments and you have a successful title defense on your hands. Jon Arnold
Argentina. There is no doubt that the winner will come from Conmebol, but choosing between the best South American countries feels impossible. Still, the Argentina squad is littered with top players and I’m 95% sure that Lionel Messi is still the best player in the tournament. As far as the deciding factors go, you could do a lot worse. Joseph Lowery
Argentina. Let’s face it: the team is stacked, experienced and thrives under pressure. This could also be Messi’s last tournament as captain of his national team, which is a nice bit of extra motivation. Julia Ranney
Uruguay. Marcelo Bielsa has built a compact and competitive team that has a clear idea of what they want to do on the pitch. No individual player stands out above the others, so they all have an equal presence on the field, which flows seamlessly together. No other country, except Argentina, has been South American champion as often as Uruguay; with the two countries owning 15 titles each. Raul Vilchis
You can read the full report below: