Argentina proved why it's the class of the world in Tuesday's 4-0 win against the U.S. men's national team in the semifinal of the Copa America Centenario.
It was always going to be a longshot for the USMNT to defeat Argentina, the top-ranked team in FIFA's rankings, but they looked frightened by the competition and didn't put up a fight at all, failing to muster a single shot on goal.
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Here are three things we learned from the one-sided clash:
1. USMNT lacks depth compared to the world's top teams. Yes, Jermaine Jones, Alejandro Bedoya and Bobby Wood were out of the lineup. It always hurts to have regular starters out of action, but Argentina had world-class players out as well. Angel Di Maria and Nicolas Gaitan were both out for Argentina, and Sergio Aguero, one of the most prolific scorers in the Premier League, never saw the pitch.
Jurgen Klinsmann decided to play Kyle Beckerman, Graham Zusi and — for some reason — Chris Wondolowski in place of his three suspended starters, and none made any kind of positive impact. Heading into this game, the USMNT was playing with fight and a solidity in the back four unrivaled by the other teams in the competition. But Tuesday, they were sloppy and looked overwhelmed against a better team.
Christian Pulisic, the 17-year-old Borussia Dortmund star, finally saw the pitch to start the second half, but by that time the game was already lost. It's time for Klinsmann to start developing his talented young players instead of relying on veterans who weren't good enough in the first place.
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2. Despite a deep run, the USMNT should be disappointed with their Copa America performance thus far. There have been positives. The back four came together at times to form a powerful, stout defense in front of Brad Guzan. Clint Dempsey returned to form and Wood certainly looks like one for the future. But in the end, the USMNT had no chance of beating the two best teams it faced.
Colombia outclassed them in the first game of the group stages, as James Rodriguez was clearly the best player in the stadium. Then, Argentina flexed its muscle and ran all over them from start to finish. Passing was a problem for the USMNT throughout the entire tournament and Tuesday was no different. Argentina completed 587 passes while Klinsmann's squad completed just 226.
The USMNT gets to play in the consolation game against the loser of Wednesday's semifinal game against Colombia and Chile, but both of those teams are world class and could give them the same problem they faced against Argentina.
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3. Lionel Messi is the Michael Jordan of his sport. A lot of people want to be like Mike, but Messi has actually accomplished it. Many young basketball fans wish they could have lived through Jordan's glory years of the 1980s and '90s. He was the best and most exciting player the sport had ever seen. Now, soccer fans of every age are experiencing one of the best, if not the best, player of all time in Messi.
The five-time FIFA Ballon d'Or winner broke Argentina's scoring record Tuesday when he netted his 55th international goal on a sublime free kick in the top-right corner. Messi makes soccer look easy. He's quick with the ball at his feet, he has the ability to pick out the perfect pass no matter where he is on the pitch and he can thunder a shot past opposing keepers with either foot.
Even though Messi doesn't play in America very often, plenty of Americans just learned on Tuesday what a master he really is.