Chilean players celebrate with the trophy of the 2015 Copa America football championship, in Santiago, Chile.
DPA/Santiago
Hosts Chile won the Copa America Saturday to lift the first major trophy in their history, beating Argentina 4-1 in the penalty shootout.
The score remained 0-0 after 120 minutes, triggering the shootout shootout. Gonzalo Higuain and Ever Banega missed their shots for World Cup runners-up Argentina in Santiago’s National Stadium, after Lionel Messi scored on the first kick.
Matias Fernandez, Arturo Vidal, Charles Aranguiz and Alexis Sanchez were all on target for Chile.
The host captain Claudio Bravo lifted the trophy before an exultant home crowd. “We needed to leave behind our negative history,” Bravo said. “I dreamed of lifting this trophy one day, as national team captain.”
“Chile deserved this,” Vidal agreed. “This is an immense joy.”
The current generation of Chile players, led by Vidal, Sanchez and Bravo and by Argentinian-born coach Jorge Sampaoli became the best in the country’s history, at least in terms of results.
This generation of Argentina players, many of whom already lost the 2007 Copa America final and last year’s World Cup final, were unable to win their country’s first senior title since 1993, and they were devastated.
“Losing is like torture, it is an immense sadness. We are doing things very well and things just don’t happen for us. This is a karma that we need to live with,” Javier Mascherano said after the game. “We again lacked that dose of luck you need to have in a final.”
“We came second again, we again failed to attain our objective,” said Angel Di Maria, who missed last year’s World Cup final due to injury and was taken off the pitch after less than half an hour in Santiago with what appeared to be a muscle tear.
Argentina coach Gerardo Martino, who got the job after the 2014 World Cup, felt for his men.
“I feel great sadness, particularly after seeing the lads in the changing-room. We have to go through a situation like the one a year ago, but they did very well, with great dignity, with great pride,” he said.
Uruguay remain the team with the most Copa America titles, 15, while Argentina stay on 14. Chile, who had been runners-up four times, finally have one.
Argentina played their worst game in the Copa America, missing plenty of passes and generally failing to play on their own terms. Chile put pressure on Argentina’s players and were the better side.
“Chile failed to shine and Argentina failed to shine,” Martino said in his analysis of the final.
In the first half, Chile controlled possession and exercised great pressure on Argentina. However, the best chances were blue-and-white. A header from Sergio Aguero 20 minutes into the match and a shot from Ezequiel Lavezzi in injury time ended in easy saves for Chile keeper Bravo.
Eduardo Vargas had a good chance for Chile in counter-attack in the 22nd minute, but his distant shot went very high.
The second half started with great intensity but without clear chances, although Chile came closest. Sanchez sent a volley wide off the far post in the 81st minute.
In injury time, a great run from Messi set up Lavezzi on the left, but the PSG forward’s cross was too far forward and Higuain’s shot found only the outside of the net.
At the end of the first half of extra time, Javier Mascherano lost a dangerous ball in midfield and inadvertently set up Sanchez. Pablo Zabaleta managed to get in the Chilean’s way, and the Arsenal striker’s shot went high.
With less than five minutes to go, Argentina keeper Sergio Romero deflected a free kick taken by Matias Fernandez.