Brazil seek hat-trick – but eyes are on 2014

Training just outside Buenos Aires, Brazil are honing their game plan for the 43rd Copa America, starting late tonight, as the five-times world champions chase a third straight win in the international game’s oldest event.

But if re-asserting regional dominance would put a big feather in the cap of coach Mano Menezes, both the Brazilians and their Argentinian hosts have an eye fixed on the 2014 World Cup.

Given Argentina’s failure to land a major trophy at senior level since their Copa triumph in 1993, the pressure is mainly on the albiceleste.

Brazil can, in contrast, claim to be moulding a work in progress which is not supposed to go on show until the World Cup itself.

Given the World Cup records in particular of both countries, many believe that the Copa is all about Argentina and Brazil. But both are acutely aware of at least one side which have tripped them up in the past.

That side is Uruguay, who proved the pick of the continental crop at last year’s World Cup finals, outdoing both of its illustrious neighbours by reaching the semi-finals.

Uruguay share the record of Copa wins – 14 – with Argentina, to just eight for Brazil, albeit the Brazilians have won four out of the last five.

Carlos Tevez, who hopes to create a deadly tandem with Lionel Messi in the Argentinian attack, told reporters after flying back from a successful season with Manchester City that: “I am dying to win the Copa. I played in the last two finals which we lost to Brazil. But now we will have home support behind us and this will be key.”

But Brazil will, as ever, be the major threat.

While Argentina have laboured to find a winning formula since the halycon days of Diego Maradona and company, the Selecao have landed the 2002 World Cup triumph and a string of Copa America crowns.

Argentina coach Sergio Batista, selected to pick up the pieces after the World Cup mauling by Germany last summer, can at least point to his 2008 Olympic success while he has also overseen prestigious friendly wins recently against both Spain and Brazil.

But those matches were followed by losses to Nigeria and Poland and already Batista is in the line of critical fire both from his bosses and the fans.

Previous Copas have been the platform for grooming young stars in the making and this year will be no different as Brazil look to their prodigy Neymar, currently of Santos but coveted by a strong of top European clubs.

With three years to the World Cup, there is time for such talent to be given its head and to blossom despite no qualifiers to test the mettle of Brazil’s new generation.

Playing tonight: Argentina vs Bolivia.

Recent finals

2007: Brazil 3 - Argentina 0
2004: Brazil 2 - Argentina 2 (Brazil won 4-2 on pens)
2001: Colombia 1 - Mexico 0
1999: Brazil 3 - Uruguay 0
1997: Brazil 3 - Bolivia 1