Isaac Heath- Uruguay is the best team in South America. No, they did not get lucky to make the semifinals in last years(yes, I did not forget Gyans missed penalty in the quarters) World Cup, and there was no luck in their dismantling of Paraguay in Sunday’s Copa America final either. Move over Brazil and Argentina, the true kings of South American football have arrived.
For anyone who watched the Copa America in its entirety, Uruguay from start to finish seemed to be a level ahead of everyone else in the field. The Celeste struggled with a few early draws and held on to beat Mexico to make it through to the next round, but from watching them play you had the feeling that they were on the edge of something special all along.
Sunday was special.
Paraguay, while a surprise finalist, is no slouch. As I have argued before in various pieces and pod casts here on USA10kit, they are one of the most difficult teams to beat in the world and rarely find themselves beaten as soundly as they were in the Copa America final.
Uruguay put the screws to them early and often with the always dangerous Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez leading the charge. A few minutes after a near goal from center-back Diego Lugano on a corner kick, Luis Suarez collected a ball in the box off a fortuitous bounce and then slotted it (with the help of a deflection again) past a helpless Justo Villar for an early 1-0 lead.
You could feel the extremely pro Uruguayan stadium erupt after that early goal, and you got the feeling that the rout was on. Just before halftime when Diego Forlan blasted a one time shot past Villar off of a pass from Egidio Arevalo Rios the rout really was on.
Paraguay refused to go away though, as the never say die attitude that got them to the final shone brightly early in the second half. But just when it seemed they would cut the lead in half and make it a game, Fernando Muslera came to the rescue with yet another spectacular save on a brilliant volley by Nelson Valdez.
Forlan netted his second goal of the match and the tournament to seal the victory in the final minutes and the man now joined an exclusive club with his grandfather and father as a Copa America champion with Uruguay. After a 16 year drought without a title, Uruguay, who dominated South American and World soccer in the first half of the 20th century, finally seems to have come full circle after years of mediocrity.
While for some this Copa America was boring because of the lack of goals in the early rounds, and because the final did not contain Argentina or Brazil, I would argue it was a great Copa. Much like the champion of the tournament, Uruguay, it took a few games to get going, but once it did it was beautiful to watch.