Big Names Out of Copa América 2024
The Copa América 2024 will be played this summer in the USA from 21 June to 15 July. As the tournament kicked off a couple of days ago, we take a look at some of the best players who will miss out on the continental competition.
Paulo Dybala
Less than two years ago Dybala stepped up at the World Cup final to score his penalty, today he missed out on the final 26-player list. A good season leading the attack at Roma under José Mourinho and Daniele De Rossi was not enough to earn him a spot and he’s left out once again like in the 2021 edition.
Dybala has never been able to establish himself in the Argentinian national team because of his similar characteristics to Lionel Messi. When competing for a spot with the best player in history who likes to play every single minute, the opportunities are limited.
Besides the incompatibility with Messi, Lionel Scaloni’s final list suggests a preference for another type of player for his system. Four out of seven attackers selected have characteristics of traditional wingers, a position Dybala has not performed at.
Neymar
The 32-year-old Brazilian is without a doubt the biggest absence of the competition. He is the only name on the list out by injury after suffering a cruciate ligament tear in October 2023, an injury that will cost him almost a full year of his professional career.
Neymar was labelled as “The Next Pelé” shortly after his amazing debut at Santos FC aged just 17 years old. 15 years later, he became the Brazilian national team’s top scorer and won the first Olympic gold medal at Rio 2016, but it will be impossible to achieve Pelé’s level.
He is yet to win his first international major trophy, missing out on Brazil’s 2019 Copa América triumph due to injury. The next chance will be the 2026 World Cup where we will see a different Neymar a year on from his departure from European football.
Edinson Cavani
Cavani decided to announce his retirement from the Uruguay National team before the final Copa América list. He played 136 games with La Celeste and scored 58 goals, becoming the second all-time top goal-scorer just behind Luis Suárez. In his statement, he expressed his wish to focus on his club Boca Juniors at this stage of his career at 37 years of age.
After a promising start to 2024, he seemed to be in contention for a place on Marcelo Bielsa’s list, however with Darwin Núñez set to start, it was between himself and Suárez.
Arturo Vidal
The 37-year-old was the main surprise of Ricardo Gareca’s final list for the Chilean national team. The decision caused a lot of talk especially with the player being very vocal about it stating it was not a football-based decision. Vidal was the star of La Roja on their way to Copa América triumph in 2015 and 2016 but will now have to support as a fan.
Besides his age, the midfielder stated he is determined to continue at the national team and has a clear goal of qualifying for the World Cup 2026 after missing out on the last two occasions.
Casemiro
The Brazilian midfielder has not been selected by recently announced manager Dorival Júnior for the upcoming Copa América. Casemiro had a poor 2023/24 season at Manchester United, suffering harsh criticism from both media and fans.
When considering the midfielder on the final list, it is very clear how the 32-year-old was outperformed by his compatriots in the Premier League. Five out of the six midfielders selected currently play at the top English flight: João Gomes, Bruno Guimarães, Douglas Luiz, Andreas Pereira and Lucas Paquetá.
Casemiro’s future with Verdeamarela is compromised to say the least with young upcoming stars playing at the highest level. However, do not write off a return, especially if we see Carlo Ancelotti takes charge before the 2026 World Cup.