Neither of the South American giants has hit their best ahead of the 2019 Copa America, but one will progress to face Chile or Peru in the final
Copa America hosts Brazil will tackle great rivals Argentina in the first semi-final of the 2019 edition in Belo Horizonte.
Tite’s Selecao have not been entirely convincing as they have reached the final four, and though they are undefeated struggled past Paraguay on penalties after a scoreless draw last Thursday.
Argentina, meanwhile, have been criticised throughout this tournament but are the only semi-finalists who did not need spot kicks to progress. Goals from Lautaro Martinez and Giovanni Lo Celso gave them a 2-0 win over Venezuela, though again it was a performance that left much to be desired.
Which of these misfiring giants will make the final?
| Game | Brazil vs Argentina |
| Date | Tuesday, July 2 |
| Time | 1:00am BST / 8:00pm ET |
| Stream (US) | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Globo TV Internacional / Telemundo | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be broadcast on Premier Sports 1 and can be streamed via Premier Player HD.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Premier Sports 1 | Premier Player HD |
| Position | Brazil squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Alisson, Cassio, Ederson |
| Defenders | Thiago Silva, Miranda, Marquinhos, Filipe Luis, Alex Sandro, Dani Alves, Eder, Fagner |
| Midfielders | Casemiro, Arthur, Coutinho, Allan, Fernandinho, Paqueta, Willian |
| Forwards | Neres, Jesus, Everton, Firmino, Richarlison |
Brazil have Casemiro back from suspension, with the Real Madrid star set to go immediately into the starting XI at the expense of Allan. Fernandinho remains an injury doubt, so Arthur should start.
Richarlison remains a doubt due to illness.
Possible Brazil starting XI: Alisson; Alves, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, Luis; Arthur, Casemiro; Jesus, Coutinho, Everton; Firmino
| Position | Argentina squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Armani, Marchesin, Andrada |
| Defenders | Foyth, Tagliafico, Saravia, Pezzella, Funes Mori, Casco, Otamendi |
| Midfielders | Paredes, Pereyra, Acuna, Di Maria, Pizarro, De Paul, Rodriguez, Lo Celso |
| Forwards | Aguero, Messi, Suarez, Dybala, Lautaro Martinez |
Although there have been rumours suggesting Sergio Aguero could be dropped, Lionel Scaloni has moved to emphatically deny these. Indeed, it may well be that Argentina go with an unchanged side.
Possible Argentina starting XI: Armani; Foyth, Pezzella, Otamendi, Tagliafico; De Paul, Paredes, Acuna; Messi; Martinez, Aguero
Brazil are warm 4/5 favourites to win this game inside 90 minutes with bet365. Argentina are priced at 15/4 outsiders, with a draw on offer at 12/5.
Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
The tension is rising in Brazil ahead of the climax of the 2019 Copa America. The national team’s comparatively lamentable performance in international competition means that there is pressure on this side – hot favourites to win the tournament at its outset – to fulfil their destiny, but indifferent performances have failed to reassure fans or coach Tite that they are capable of going all the way.
Indeed, the coach has admitted to having sleepless nights ahead of the semi-final clash with Argentina, doubtless haunted by performances against Venezuela and Paraguay that were both thoroughly indifferent and both ended in scoreless draws through 90 minutes.
“I couldn’t sleep properly, I’m not Superman, I’m the way I am and I can deal with that,” he explained on Monday. “Yesterday I woke up at 3.15 am, I was thinking about what I’m going to do.”
Unlike their previous opponents, Brazil will have to tackle a world-class force in this game in the form of Lionel Messi – a player who cannot be entirely contained, the coach has argued.
“You can’t eliminate Messi, you might be able to reduce what he can do but you can’t neutralise a player of that level, just as you can’t neutralise Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino, Willian, David Neres – at some point, they will produce something,” he said.
If Messi is still feared in Brazil, Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni has been forced to defend the five-time Ballon d’Or winner after a tournament that has yet to be touched by his magic.
“We’re used to him scoring three goals per match or for him to take out five players from the opposition, but I’m more than happy with him,” he said. “The players have so much support for Leo that at times they say they want to be champions more for him than themselves.
“There’s no doubt the best player in the history of football is missing a trophy with the Argentina national team and it’s for that reason his team-mates say things like that.”
Argentina, meanwhile, have a formidable record when it comes to playing in semi-finals, having won 12 of their previous 13 trips to the last four. Among these was a blistering 4-0 win over the USA in the 2016 Copa America, a match in which Messi starred.
A repeat performance in one of international football’s biggest fixtures would be most welcome.
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