Copa America Takeaways: U.S., Mexico drop the ball in Matchday 2

Jesse Marsch has enjoyed a show-stopping first 360 minutes at the helm of the Canadian men’s national team.

In just four matches, he saw his squad draw world No. 2 France, battle against World Cup winner and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, and solidify Canada’s first-ever goal (and eventual win) at the 2024 Copa América. Not bad, huh?

While Les Rouges’ historic victory over the Peruvians made headlines this week, its Copa América opponents haven’t been short on drama, either. From Mexico’s unexpected result, to the U.S.’ shocking loss, read on to learn the key takeaways from Matchday 2 and how teams might adapt moving forward.

GROUP A: All hail Jonathan David

O Canada! Les Rouges brought the Marsh era to life on Tuesday with a first three-point victory under its new manager. Amidst sweltering temperatures (32 degrees celsius plus humidity), Canada showed heart, confidence and maturity against a scrappy and physical Peru. Was it perfect, free-flowing soccer? Nope. Did Canada display technical and tactical brilliance? Also nope. But what’s worth pointing out is the grit and energy Marsch has managed to inject his players with, which will be necessary heading into Matchday 3. Ultimately, three points are three points, no matter how they are earned.

Against a 10-man Peru, Lille’s Jonathan David found the net in the 74th-minute for his 27th goal in 50 international appearances. While many consider the 24-year-old as the Man of the Match, keeper Maxime Crépeau also played hero after rushing to a linesman who collapsed from the heat. Not only that, the Portland Timbers star made several clutch saves, especially in the final few minutes to preserve the win. Steady goalkeeping has been at the heart of Canada’s Copa América campaign, and without it, scorelines would surely have been different.

Next up, Canada plays Chile on Saturday to learn who advances to the knockouts. As it stands, if Argentina beats Peru, which seems like a no-brainer, Canada would only need a draw to advance. However, there’s a catch. Captain Lionel Messi will be skipping the next match with injury, manager Lionel Scaloni is suspended for returning late for the second half in its first two Copa América matches, and Argentina have had a particularly low-scoring group stage thus far. 

Despite being an older team, Chile is defensively strong and utilize a high press. Considering this, Marsch’s side must decrease turnovers and focus on playing possession-based soccer to beat Chile’s structure. Canada lost the ball many times against Peru, which is something that needs to be addressed moving forward.

As Argentina has already advanced to the quarterfinals, it’ll be a battle of the fittest to grab the remaining knockout spot. Will Canada’s confidence, Peru’s physicality or Chile’s tactfulness rise above the others? Only time will tell.

GROUP B: “Venezuela, I am [not] your father”

Before Wednesday’s match between Venezuela and Mexico, Mexican newspaper Récord published the headline “Venezuela, I am your father” alongside an image of Darth Vader, referencing El Tri’s dominant record over the Venezuelans. It must have been awkward when Fernando Batista’s side took down Mexico 1-0, pushing El Tri to third in Group B and Venezuela to the top and into the quarterfinals.

To be fair, it was a result many wouldn’t have predicted. Mexico had won the previous 13 outings between the two, but without doing research, fans might not have known Venezuela’s shining record, with only two losses to Colombia and Italy in its last 15 matches. Under Batista, the squad is enthusiastic and tactically flexible, and many of its players, such as keeper Rafael Romo, have expressed how “underestimated” Venezuela is. That said, La Vinotinto won because Salomón Rodón was successful from the spot. Despite already punching its ticket to the next round, it’ll have to be more prolific moving forward like it was against Ecuador in Matchday 1. Venezuela’s next game is against bottom-of-the-group Jamaica, who’s struggled with retaining possession and scoring goals this tournament. With the pressure of making the knockouts removed for Venezuela, it’s the perfect time to test out new combinations and take risks.

Speaking of Ecuador, if Mexico wants to advance it must beat Félix Sánchez’s side. No pressure, eh? Ecuador is known for its aggressive high press, something Mexico typically struggles with. Simply put, when the two face off on Sunday, Mexico will have to be gutsy. But with co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup on the horizon, things aren’t looking good for El Tri, who seem to dig itself deeper into a hole with every game played. The national team program is in tatters and doesn’t appear to bring in fresh talent at the speed it should. At the Qatar World Cup, Mexico suffered its earliest exit in 44 years, only beating hosts Saudi Arabia. Additionally, star midfielder Edson Álvarez is out of the tournament with a hamstring injury, and defender César Montes, who took Álvarez’s place as captain, is questionable with injury after being subbed out of the Venezuela game. Yikes.

GROUP C: Is the U.S. OK?

The Panama-U.S. match on Thursday evening could be the most dramatic game of Copa América 2024 thus far. Within a span of 10 minutes, the States went from having an early goal taken away for offside, to going a man down, to going back up a goal, to Panama equalizing a few minutes later. It’s enough to make anyone’s head spin. But the action didn’t stop there – in the final minutes, Los Canaleros scored the game-winning goal and recorded a red card for itself.

From a fan perspective, it’s peak entertainment. But from a soccer perspective, it was one of the most head-scratching USMNT performances in quite some time. Gregg Berhalter’s side was disorganized, disorderly and anxious. Folarin Balogun’s clean finish in the 22nd minute was the highlight of the night, but otherwise, it was a shocking result.

On Matchday 3, the U.S. will face Uruguay, currently Group C leaders with six points, and things aren’t looking good for the hosts. After a 5-0 thrashing of Bolivia on Thursday, Marcelo Bielsa’s side look like serious trophy contenders. At the 2024 Copa América, Uruguay have now scored more goals (eight) than the U.S., Mexico, Brazil and Argentina combined (yes, you read that correctly). Liverpool’s Darwin Núñez is on fire, scoring in his seventh straight game in an Uruguay shirt. Additionally, Bielsa’s side beat Brazil, Chile and Argentina in World Cup qualifiers this season, alongside dominating Mexico in a friendly. This means that in order to advance, the Stars and Stripes have to beat Uruguay, which is a tall order. If the teams draw, Panama must lose to Bolivia for the U.S. to get to the knockouts. And with Panama on a high after Thursday’s upset, it’s hard to see Thomas Christiansen’s side slipping up. In other words, the odds aren’t in the States’ favour, and if Berhalter’s squad is sent packing, it would be a massive failure for the program.

GROUP D: Quarter century Colombia

If you weren’t a Colombia believer before, you might want to be one now. In Friday evening’s match between Colombia and Costa Rica, it was Los Ticos who started on the front foot, just like it did against Brazil last time out. However, after Luis Diaz’s goal from the spot, Néstor Lorenzo’s side never looked back. In the second half, thanks to smart passing and offensive aggression from James Rodriguez, Jhon Córdoba and Davinson Sánchez netted two more goals three minutes apart, sending the squad to the quarterfinals. The win also meant Colombia is now 25 games unbeaten in a row — an unbelievable stat that’s gone seriously under the radar. 

What stood out about Los Cafeteros’ win was not just its dominance, but its structure. Lorenzo played two strikers up front, a choice that isn’t always seen in present-day soccer. However, it paid off for the South Americans, as the formation allowed the strikers to stretch the opposition’s backline. Clearly, it was too much for Costa Rica, and it’ll be interesting to see how it fares against Brazil in Matchday 3 on Tuesday. Colombia has a sense of togetherness, too. After scoring, Sánchez held up his injured teammates’ shirt, which says everything you need to know about the team’s mentality. 

Brazil’s Vinicius Junior also showed mental strength, taking criticisms of his and Brazil’s Matchday 1 performances personally. The Real Madrid forward was direct, took chances and created opportunities in Brazil’s 4-1 win over Paraguay on Friday. The 23-year-old’s fire earned him a first-half brace and reignited Brazil’s brilliance ahead of a very important third group game. As it stands, Colombia sits top of Group D with six points, while Brazil has four. A draw would see Colombia earn D1, while a Brazil win would send Dorival Júnior’s side to the summit. Unless Costa Rica beats Paraguay by at least four goals in Matchday 3, 90 minutes is what separates Brazil and Colombia from securing the most favourable knockout placement.

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