Copa America Best 11: The Sporting News team of the 2024 tournament has no room for Messi | Sporting News

The 2024 Copa America has featured many incredible storylines. From stunning goals to physical battles and off-field controversies, CONMEBOL’s title tournament has given fans so much to remember.

As always, there were plenty of players who stood out as top performers, and should be recognized for their strong contributions.

Surprisingly, many of the well-known superstars were not amongst the competition’s standouts. After coming off injured in the final, Argentina legend Lionel Messi finished a relatively quiet competition by his standards. He scored just one goal in the tournament, a semifinal strike, while missing some time due to various fitness issues. Additionally, Uruguay star Darwin Nunez also struggled in front of goal, missing a host of chances.

Yet, those vacancies were admirably filled by others, with especially strong performances coming from defenders and midfielders in a tournament lacking true attacking quality on the whole. The Sporting News brings you the best of the best, with 11 players who stood out above the others with a strong showing in the United States.

MORE: A first-hand account of the Copa America brawl following Uruguay vs. Colombia

Copa America 2024 Best 11

SN’s Team of the Tournament (4-4-2): Emiliano Martinez (GK) — Jon Aramburu, Cristian Romero, Davinson Sanchez, Antonee Robinson — Stephen Eustaquio, James Rodriguez, Richard Rios, Manuel Ugarte — Lautaro Martinez, Luis Diaz.

Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martinez (ARG)

With Argentina sleep-walking through most of the 2024 Copa America, they leaned heavily on goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez to keep them afloat, and boy did he deliver.

The most heralded “Dibu” moment so far was his performance in the quarterfinals against Ecuador, where he saved two penalties in the shootout, keeping their hopes of a title defense alive and adding to his growing list of shootout heroics.

Yet, his performances have been more than just that, keeping four clean sheets en route to the final while facing 3.93 xG and 10 shots on target from opponents.

Center-back: Cristian Romero (ARG), Davinson Sanchez (COL)

Two 2024 finalists anchor the defensive line as Cristian Romero of Argentina and Davinson Sanchez of Colombia are the top performers this summer.

While Argentina needed Emi Martinez most in the penalty shootout against Ecuador, he’s had a lot of help from his back line. Romero has developed a reputation for poor discipline, but has been utterly outstanding this summer, successful on an insane 85% of his ground duels and winning an exceptional 21 tackles. In comparison, he did not see a single yellow card at the Copa America, prior to the final, and committed under a foul per match, an outstanding number for a defender at such a physical competition.

Meanwhile, a former Tottenham player slots in alongside a current one as Sanchez leads the way for Colombia. He was a monster in the air through the group stage and knockouts, and hit on 40% of his long balls, a strong possessional rate. Like Romero, he wasn’t booked during the tournament ahead of the final, and committed under two fouls per game.

Full-back: Jon Aramburu (VEN), Antonee Robinson (USA)

On the flanks are a pair of relatively unheralded players often flying under the radar at European clubs. On the right is Real Sociedad youngster Jon Aramburu, who may find himself with a lot more playing time in LaLiga this coming season.

Prior to the final in Miami, Aramburu was, incredibly, FotMob’s highest rated player of the entire tournament by average match score. His tackling represented the highlight of his performances, leading the competition with 26 tackles, an average of nearly nine per match. He also assisted two goals, including the only goal of their 1-1 draw with Canada in the quarterfinals. The 21-year-old is a star in the making.

There weren’t many bright spots for the United States in a massively disappointing performance that saw head coach Gregg Berhalter dismissed, but Antonee Robinson was chief amongst what little there was to savor. The 26-year-old Fulham man has quietly been one of the best left-backs in the Premier League for two or three years now, and was immense for the United States this summer.

Robinson was strong in the air, tackled well, and assisted the side’s man-down goal against Panama in an eventual defeat. At a competition that didn’t feature a ton of consistent performers at left-back, Robinson gets the nod.

Midfield: Stephen Eustaquio (CAN), James Rodriguez (COL), Manuel Ugarte (URU), Richard Rios (COL)

The very first name in our Team of the Tournament for the 2024 Copa America was unquestionably James Rodriguez. The Colombian superstar has rediscovered his glittering form from the 2014 World Cup and set yet another summer international tournament alight.

Rodriguez’s six assists at the 2024 competition set a new record for a single Copa America, breaking Lionel Messi’s mark of five from Argentina’s 2021 title run. He created chances for teammates in multiple different ways, taking whatever his opponents would give him and making the most of it. In a tournament starved for goal scoring, he’s been a lone bright spot up front — his six assists were three times as many as any other player at the competition.

MORE: James Rodriguez setting the 2024 Copa America ablaze in Colombia’s run to the final

Uruguay’s heartbreaking semifinal exit cut short what could have been much more, but Manuel Ugarte was the brightest of many positive showings from Marcelo Bielsa’s side. The 23-year-old PSG star had a mediocre first year in France, but looked far more comfortable during the summer international tournament.

Ugarte played every minute of Uruguay’s five matches, a monumental feat in a high-intensity Bielsa system, proving a valuable two-way player by winning nearly five tackles per match while distributing the ball all across the field at a high rate.

Canada impressed under new head coach Jesse Marsch as they pushed to the semifinals as the last of the CONCACAF guests left standing. Midfield star Stephen Eustaquio has been the team’s most valuable component for some time now, and the Porto man again showed why at this tournament.

With Les Rouges misfiring up front, Eustaquio shielded his back line effectively against strong competition, including a pair of games against defending world champions Argentina. The 27-year-old logged strong tackling and interception numbers while delivering nearly 5.5 progressive passes per match, a beefy total for a team often under pressure and holding little possession.

Finally, Colombian midfielder Richard Rios had a breakout tournament, as the 24-year-old will certainly get looks from European clubs with his performances. The 24-year-old saved his best for last, bossing the first half of the final against Argentina and finishing with two chances created, a 92% passing rate, 2/2 dribbling, 3/3 on long balls, and six defensive actions including two completed tackles.

Forward: Lautaro Martinez (ARG), Luis Diaz (COL)

With so little forward play impressing at the 2024 Copa America, we’ve only nominated two individuals up front, as Golden Boot winner Lautaro Martinez appears alongside Colombian dribbling wizard Luis Diaz.

While Inter star Martinez has not been a consistent starter for Argentina in recent months, nor at this tournament, he would win the 2024 Copa America Golden Boot award as the competition’s top scorer, sealed with his dramatic winner in the 112th minute of the final. Winning the award is quite something considering he started just two of Argentina’s matches in the competition.

Liverpool star Luis Diaz was electric across the entire summer tournament, scoring two goals and generating a healthy number of chances for his teammates as well. His dazzling dribbling was on display often, shredding defenders repeatedly by winning nearly three take-ons per match and totaling the second-most of any player in the tournament, behind only teammate Richard Rios. His seven chances created came at a 0.2 xA rate, meaning he generated exceptionally high-value opportunities for his fellow Colombians.