Copa America 2015 Standings & Schedule: Argentina, Chile, Peru & Paraguay Reach Final 4, Will Play For Championship
And just like that, we've reach the final four.
Only Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Argentina remain in the running for the 2015 Copa America championship. This is just what soccer fans throughout South America wanted. We've experienced upsets, game-winning goals, terrible defeats and now the final four squads will face off for the right to play in the championship game.
Here, we breakdown the final four by teams, matchups and schedules.
Chile (19) vs. Peru (61)
Neither of these national teams have been able to win a Copa America in quite a while. Chile has never won this tournament before, and Peru last won this event in 1975 when they defeated Colombia. Don't let the rankings fool you. Chile is the most balanced squad in this tournament with maybe the best goalkeeper in the world in Claudio Bravo. Chile has all the pieces, but can they execute when it matters most?
Bravo has allowed zero goals in three of his four games. The only game where Chile conceded a goal was against Mexico, in a surprising 3-3 draw.
While Chile was taking care of business eliminating Uruguay, Peru beat Bolivia, 3-1. At the 2011 Copa America, Chile defeated Peru in a Group C game. Chile has the all-time edge over Peru with 41 wins and 21 losses. The last time Chile was the host nation was in 1991 when they placed third overall behind Brazil and Argentina.
Schedule: Monday, June 29. 7:30 p.m. EST. 8:30 p.m. Chile time.
Argentina (3) vs. Paraguay (85)
Argentina should win this game, right? They have the best player in the world, they are the highest ranked national team in all of South America, and they have yet to lose a single game. But wait. Paraguay also hasn't lost a single game, and they did reach the finals in 2011 when they lost to Uruguay. Argentina and Paraguay tied 2-2 in their Group B game just a while ago.
Argentina has a resounding favorable edge over Paraguay all-time, 58 wins to just 15. Paraguay has never defeated Argentina in a Copa America game. Lionel Messi knows he has to get the job done here.
Neither one of these squads have a great defensive unit, but they have shown great resilience. Both Argentina and Paraguay advanced with victories in the quarterfinals by way of penalties. If Argentina wins, they will be playing in the finals for the 27th time, the most ever. Paraguay is looking to make their ninth finals appearance.
Schedule: Tuesday, June 30. 7:30 p.m. EST. 8:30 p.m. Chile time.
An interesting theme for the last four remaining teams are the coaches. All four coaches are Argentinians. Jorge Sampaoli of Chile, Ramon Diaz of Paraguay, Gerardo Martino of Argentina and Ricardo Gareca with Peru are the final four coaches, all of whom were born in Argentina.
Championship and Third Place Game
The winners of these two games will play in the championship match on Saturday, July 4 at 4 p.m. EST (5 p.m. Chile time) at the Estadio Nacional Arena in Santiago, Chile where a champion will be crowned. There will also be a third place game for the losers of the two semifinals games. That will take place on Friday, July 3 at 7:30 p.m EST. That's 8:30 p.m. Chile time.
All games be shown on beIN sports. You watch a live game stream here.
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