• Juan Cominges
• Columnist for the Copa América

Chile triumphs over Argentina in the Copa América Centenario final

Chile once again claimed victory in a penalty shoot-out to win their second consecutive Copa América Centenario title, defeating Argentina, who will now go 25 years without a major international trophy.

Pressure

We all want to win a final and both teams understood that the way to do it is by playing. They started by taking risks, trying to outplay each other through possession (always playing on the ground), pressing hard and effectively. Chile started to make a small difference because they understand that there is a different pace for pressing and fighting versus retaining possession. They have more players who are involved in keeping the ball than Argentina, who do not utilize their full-backs to try and gain the upper hand in midfield.

Goalkeepers

Playing out from the back is not a trend, it is as old as the game itself. It is a necessity in order to gain an advantage in the deeper lines.

It is very good that both coaches understand this and use the goalkeeper as the free man for a clear build-up.

In this aspect, Bravo surpasses Romero by finding the free man more often in the middle or on the flanks, and by using the long ball to the forwards sparingly.

Expulsions

When both teams were reduced to 10 men, many believed that Chile would suffer more with the expulsion of Marcelo Díaz, who plays very well and makes his teammates play better.

Argentina, with Rojo's expulsion, loses the possibility of pressuring far away from their own goal. They lose this because just as Messi attacking is equivalent to two players, when defending and with 10 men, Messi is one less.

Argentina, sitting a bit deeper, hopeful for some individual outbursts from their attacking players and praying for a moment of brilliance from Messi. They end up making two substitutions for fresher players to help them continue holding on while waiting for the best player in the world.

Such was the case until the end of the match, until the penalty shootout. Penalties that ultimately give Chile their second Copa América title, confirming the good moment of this generation of Chilean footballers and deepening the title drought of the Argentine national team, which intensifies the absurd comparison between Messi and Maradona.