From Bolivia to Argentina via a Neymar-less Brazil

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With a little over a week to go until the 2024 Copa America kicks off in the United States, several nations are positioning themselves for glory in the transplanted South American competition.

Others, meanwhile, are limping into the tournament and will be hoping their recent fortunes reverse in time to spare them from Stateside embarrassment.

Here to help you sort the contenders from the calamities are the inaugural F365 Copa America power rankings:

16) Bolivia The lowest-ranked team at the tournament, Bolivia have won just twice in their last 12 fixtures, a run of dismal form that includes 3-0 defeats to Uruguay and Argentina and a 5-1 thumping at the hands of Brazil.

Without the altitude of La Paz in their favour, expect La Verde to struggle at the Copa America.

15) Costa Rica As if being drawn in the same group as Brazil and Colombia didn’t present enough of a challenge already, Costa Rica will be without their biggest star at the Copa America; former Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Kaylor Navas announced his retirement from international football last month at the age of 37.

Navas’ replacement, Ibiza’s Patrick Sequeira, managed to keep a clean sheet in an impressive draw with Uruguay earlier this month. But qualifying from their Copa group would be a huge overachievement for Gustavo Alfaro’s side.

14) Panama Surprise qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, where they were group-stage opponents of England, Panama have proven in recent years that they are no pushovers on the international stage, as last year’s shoot-out victory over the USMNT at the Gold Cup proved. Qualifying from a group that includes Uruguay and the host nation would require a huge upset, though.

READ: Euro 2024 Power Rankings

13) Jamaica Drawn against Ecuador, Venezuela and Mexico in Group B, the odds are against Jamaica escaping to the quarter-finals.

But the Reggae Boyz could be dark horses in the United States, boasting Premier League quality in the form of West Ham’s Michail Antonio and Fulham’s Bobby Decordova-Reid and coming off a third-place finish in the CONCACAF Nations League.

12) Venezuela Venezuela have not won a match since October, with their last victory coming against a Chile side who were reduced to 10 men for the final half-hour of their World Cup qualifier meeting.

Rigid defensively, Fernando Batista’s side don’t concede many goals. The problem is they don’t score many either. If that is to change at the Copa, the most likely source will be veteran striker Salomon Rondon. The former West Brom and Everton man has been in excellent form for Mexican club Pachuca, with 21 goals in 28 games this season, including a brace in a 3-0 victory over FC Cincinnati in the CONCACAF Champions Cup final earlier this month.

11) Paraguay Led by Newcastle midfielder Miguel Almiron, who will be playing in his third Copa America, Paraguay have further Premier League quality in the form of Brighton’s exciting 20-year-old forward Julio Enciso. Diego Gomez, an Inter Miami team-mate of Lionel Messi, has impressed in MLS this season, too.

But despite the talent at Daniel Garnero’s disposal, recent results have been poor. Beaten 3-0 by Chile this week, Paraguay have not won a game since a 1-0 victory over Bolivia last October.

10) Canada Jesse March’s Canada squad will be one of the most lop-sided at the tournament in respect of the quality gap between their best players and the rest of the team. In Lille striker Jonathan Davis and Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies, the Canadians boast two of the best players on show at the Copa America. But there’s a steep drop to the rest.

Canada go into the tournament struggling for form, too, with just one win from seven games. A 0-0 draw with Euro 2024 favourites France last week provides some reason for optimism, though.

9) Peru Captained by 40-year-old former Bayern Munich striker Pablo Guerrero, Peru will battle with Canada and Chile for second place in Group A, with Argentina strong favourites to top the table.

After a dismal 2023 saw them win just once in 10 fixtures, they have bounced back somewhat this year with two wins and a draw from three games played.

Those results might have boosted Peruvian confidence, but the level of opposition they have faced – Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and Paraguay – is hardly representative of the quality of opponents they’ll face at the Copa. Their final warm-up friendly against El Salvador this weekend is more of the same.

8) Chile Copa America champions in 2015 and 2016, Chile have not failed to get out of the group stage in two decades. Their progress to the knockout rounds this year is far from guaranteed, however, with Ricardo Gareca’s men drawn in a tricky group with Argentina, Canada and Peru.

In 20-year-old FC Midtjylland winger Dario Osorio, they have one of the most exciting young players at the tournament. But while some of the heroes of Chile’s past Copa America triumphs are still around, their peaks are in the distant past – captain and former Manchester City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo is now 41 and Alexis Sanchez is 35.

Still, 3-0 hammerings of Albania and Paraguay and a narrow 3-2 loss to France over their last three fixtures show La Roja still have plenty of fire.

7) Ecuador Felix Sanchez Bas’ Ecuador side are one of the hottest teams in South America as the Copa approaches. Since their group-stage exit at the 2022 World Cup, they have lost only three times in 11 games – twice to Argentina by a 1-0 scoreline and once to European champions Italy.

In that time, they’ve beaten Uruguay in a World Cup qualifier and recorded a credible draw with Colombia.

Captained by 34-year-old former West Ham striker and all-time top scorer Enner Valencia, they have firepower, while their midfield is patrolled by £115 million Chelsea star Moises Caicedo. And in Stamford Bridge-bound 17-year-old Kendry Paez they have one of the Copa’s most exciting youngsters. Irrespective of their fortunes at the tournament, Ecuador should be a fascinating watch.

6) Mexico Runners-up to the USMNT in the Nations League in March, Mexico have won just one game since, a 1-0 victory over Bolivia in a Copa warm-up earlier this month. They were thumped 4-0 by Uruguay last week, with Darwin Nunez netting a hat-trick, but they then ran Brazil close in a 3-2 loss in their final pre-tournament game.

In Feyenoord striker Santiago Gimenez they have one of the rising stars of European football. The Argentina-born hitman scored 26 goals in 41 games for the Dutch side in 2023/24, drawing reported interest from Arsenal, Liverpool and Real Madrid. But thus far he has been unable to translate his scoring form to the international stage, with just four goals from 27 caps.

In a group with Jamaica, Ecuador and Venezuela, Mexico should qualify for the knockout rounds. Progress beyond that point might depend on whether Gimenez can step up and start firing.

5) United States The USMNT ought to have been entering the Copa America on home soil in high spirits and confident of a deep run as invitees to the South American competition this month after their CONCACAF Nations League triumph in March.

But the hosts’ morale took a major hit when they were trounced 5-1 by Colombia last weekend, with a confidence-crushing defensive performance leading to calls from some quarters for manager Gregg Berhalter to be relieved of his duties on the eve of the tournament.

Against Colombia, the United States fielded an all-Europe-based starting line-up for the first time ever, an indication of the rapid development of US soccer over the past decade. With the likes of Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Chris Richards at his disposal, Berhalter is able call upon a youthful yet experienced squad that is arguably more talent-filled than any in the nation’s soccer history.

A heavy friendly loss needn’t entirely dampen home hopes of a strong Copa run, but the USMNT’s preparatory fixtures aren’t getting any easier from here. Next up: Brazil on Thursday.

READ: USMNT squad ranked from chili dog to bison’s backside ahead of Copa America

4) Colombia Nestor Lorenzo’s Colombia are the form team of the Copa America, boasting a remarkable undefeated run that dates back to February 2022.

Their streak of 22 matches without a loss includes impressive victories over Brazil, Germany and Spain. And their most recent win is perhaps the clearest indicator of their readiness to muster a deep run in the United States this month as they hammered the host nation 5-1 in Landover, Maryland, last Saturday.

At 32, playmaker James Rodriguez has begun turning back the clock and rediscovering a level of form that has eluded him for much of the last five years, while Liverpool winger Luis Diaz is the team’s dynamic attacking star.

3) Uruguay Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay will begin the Copa on a high after smashing Mexico 4-0 in their final warm-up game on June 6. The Celeste have lost just once in their last eight fixtures and are the last team to beat Argentina, defeating the world champions 2-0 at La Bombonera in Buenos Aires back in November.

There were some doubts over whether legendary striker Luis Suarez would make the cut for Bielsa’s 26-man Copa roster after he was left out of a truncated squad for the Mexico friendly. But the ex-Liverpool superstar has been selected for the tournament.

And the form of a current Reds centre-forward could be key to Uruguay’s hopes of a first South American championship since 2011; Darwin Nunez has scored five goals in his last four appearances for the national team.

2) Brazil Runners-up to Messi and co. on home soil in the last edition of the Copa America in 2021, Brazil will be looking to go one better in the United States when the tournament kicks off this month.

They will have to do so without their resident megastar, though. A cruciate knee ligament rupture means Neymar will not be available for manager Dorival Junior. In fact, the five-time world champions could usher in a youthful new era at the Copa, with Manchester United’s veteran defensive midfielder Casemiro not selected, while Real Madrid trio Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo and 17-year-old striker Endrick are all set to star.

But for all their talent, Brazil aren’t entering the tournament in great form. They’ve won just twice – beating England and Mexico in friendlies – in their last seven fixtures.

1) Argentina The tournament favourites looked a little sluggish in a 1-0 victory over Ecuador in a warm-up friendly at Chicago’s Soldier Field this week. But they are, of course, the reigning World Cup winners and Angel di Maria’s 40th-minute goal against the Ecuadorians gave Lionel Scaloni’s side a fourth win on the bounce. They have been beaten just once in seven fixtures since lifting the World Cup in Qatar a year and a half ago.

Argentina’s biggest stars might be in the twilight of their glory-packed careers, but Lionel Messi and Di Maria still have plenty left in the tank, while in Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, Julian Alvarez, Alejandro Garnacho and Lautaro Martinez, they have youth and depth in abundance.

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Source link : https://www.football365.com/news/copa-america-power-rankings-from-bolivia-to-argentina-via-a-neymar-less-brazil Author : Publish date : 2024-06-12 10:08:19 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source .

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