Football

Copa America Power Rankings: Lionel Messi's Argentina no longer No. 1 as semifinals approach

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4m ago

Jul 08, 2024 / 2360 Views

Evan Walker

Just like that, only four teams remain in the Copa America as Colombia, Canada, Argentina, and Uruguay will play for the title. While three CONMEBOL powers remain, Canada have impressed in their first few months under Jesse Marsch, and with a chance to knock off Argentina and make it to the final, it could be a landmark tournament for the Canucks. Seeing how those teams stand, there has been a shift in South American soccer, and with it, there is also a change in the number one spot of my Copa America rankings for the first time during the tournament. Let's see who nabbed it from Argentina.

Rank	Team	Change	Analysis
1	Colombia	+2	James Rodriguez is on pace to be the player of the tournament with four assists and a goal to lead Colombia. Following a five-goal thrashing of Panama, this is a team that is looking to move past Copa America disappointment and they'll have a chance when facing Uruguay.
2	Argentina	-1	Lionel Messi doesn't seem fully Healthy but even with that Argentina have done just enough to advance. Style points don't matter in international soccer but they do matter in power rankings especially as Argentina will only play tougher teams from here on out.
3	Uruguay	-1	Uruguay advanced to the semifinals but at what cost? Losing Ronald Araujo to injury and Nahitan Nandez to a red card, there are questions for Marcelo Bielsa to answer ahead of facing Colombia, but when you're able to defend Brazil with 10 men to force a penalty shootout, it's still an impressive feat.
4	Canada	+3	The Canucks have improved rapidly, especially on the defensive end, but to pass Argentina, more goals are needed. Jacob Shaffleburg is having a breakout tournament but one of Cyle Larin and Jonathan David needs to put their chances away with more consistency.
5	Venezuela	-1	Salomon Rondon's chip is the goal of the tournament but falling in penalties hurts. This is a Venezuela team on the rise as they're on track to qualify for the World Cup for the first time ever.
6	Ecuador	-	Considering the expectations heading in, this is a bit of a letdown from Ecuador even with leveling the score against Argentina. It's an experience that they'll learn from to move forward.
7	Brazil	-2	What's next for Brazil is a major question to come out of Copa America. Their stars didn't show up when it mattered and they crave a new leader. Who knows if that can be Vinicius Junior but someone needs to step up.
8	Panama	-	It was an impressive performance for Panama in Copa America until the loss of Adalberto Carrasquilla finally caught up to them. It was a perfect storm against Colombia but Los Canaleros will be back.