Vancouver upped their prices for Messi and Miami and even offered a special four-match package with the Miami match included. And then (not surprisingly to me given Miami's fixtures) Messi, Suarez and Busquets all skipped the trip.
Brazil seem off to me at the moment. A Brazilian I know said it's the worst team they've had since the late-80s, but I feel like there's enough talent there, but they are not playing very well. I'm not ruling them out, but Uruguay and Colombia seem much more likely to win the tournament than Brazil does at the moment.
The interesting thing there is that Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay and the U.S. are all on the same side of the bracket and are the likely quarter-finalists. And for me that's four of the top five teams in the tournament.
Argentina should have a pretty comfortable path to the final. Chile, Peru and Canada all have new managers this year and I think Chile are playing well since the change, but I don't see any of them challenging Argentina. In the other group, Mexico is also in a terrible run of form, but unlike Brazil I do think they lack talent and are the poorest Mexico team in generations. They will have massive support, but that can add to the pressure if things aren't going well. Ecuador should be safe to get through and Venezuela are playing well and could beat out Mexico for second. Jamaica also always plays Mexico well it seems, but their captain is injured and Leon Bailey is refusing to play for the national team. Which is too bad because they were finally showing a little team unity and spirit which has eluded them for years.
So I think Argentina will be in the final, but the other side should be very entertaining.
This 16-team format was used once before for the Copa Centennario, the 100th anniversary of the tournament held in 2016. That was in the US as well and this tournament sort of serves the same function as the old Confederations Cup, allowing the World Cup hosts a chance to have a major tournament to iron out any issues before the real thing.
Brazil seem off to me at the moment. A Brazilian I know said it's the worst team they've had since the late-80s, but I feel like there's enough talent there, but they are not playing very well. I'm not ruling them out, but Uruguay and Colombia seem much more likely to win the tournament than Brazil does at the moment.
The interesting thing there is that Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay and the U.S. are all on the same side of the bracket and are the likely quarter-finalists. And for me that's four of the top five teams in the tournament.
Argentina should have a pretty comfortable path to the final. Chile, Peru and Canada all have new managers this year and I think Chile are playing well since the change, but I don't see any of them challenging Argentina. In the other group, Mexico is also in a terrible run of form, but unlike Brazil I do think they lack talent and are the poorest Mexico team in generations. They will have massive support, but that can add to the pressure if things aren't going well. Ecuador should be safe to get through and Venezuela are playing well and could beat out Mexico for second. Jamaica also always plays Mexico well it seems, but their captain is injured and Leon Bailey is refusing to play for the national team. Which is too bad because they were finally showing a little team unity and spirit which has eluded them for years.
So I think Argentina will be in the final, but the other side should be very entertaining.
This 16-team format was used once before for the Copa Centennario, the 100th anniversary of the tournament held in 2016. That was in the US as well and this tournament sort of serves the same function as the old Confederations Cup, allowing the World Cup hosts a chance to have a major tournament to iron out any issues before the real thing.