Copa America: Argentina goes up 3-0 over USA early in second half

Argentina has seemingly secured a spot in the Copa America final after an early goal to go up 3-0 in the second half.

Team USA went into halftime down 2-0 against Argentina. It was supposed to be a time to regroup, make adjustments and come out firing. Then Gonzalo Higuain scored a goal in the 50th minute before the US squad even had a chance to mount any sort of comeback.

Unlike the first goal of the game, this one was not on Brad Guzan. The defense is not doing anything to help him out, and the focus now is to avoid a blowout. This US team is not one to give up, but Argentina is a squad who could score two more goals even with a great effort from the US.

The 2-0 lead seemed bad enough, but going down 3-0 in the second half seems to be the end of a great run for the US in this year’s Copa America. A comeback would be magical, but history is not on the team’s side.

The usual storylines regarding Jurgen Klinsmann’s ability to coach this team in major tournaments will come up following this game, but it may simply be a matter of being outmatched by the world’s greatest player and the world’s greatest team.

Klinsmann may not be the man to lead this team forward, but a semifinal appearance in a major tournament like the Copa America is nothing to be fired over. A loss against Ecuador or the failure to make the quarterfinals could have doomed Klinsmann, but a loss against Argentina is a fate suffered by many managers in major tournaments as of late.

The US needs to make a game of this and avoid being blown out like Mexico was against Chile, but that is easier said than done when Messi is racing down the field toward the goal at any given time.

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