Defending champions Argentina national football team will lock horns with Colombia in the Copa America 2024 final at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. 

The Argentina vs Colombia Copa America 2024 final will start at 5:30 AM IST on Monday, July 15.

Under head coach Lionel Scaloni, Argentina defeated Canada 2-0 in their Copa America 2024 semi-final encounter at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey to make consecutive final appearances in the competition. 

Julián Álvarez gave Argentina an early lead in the semi-final before captain Lionel Messi scored in the 51st minute to guide Argentina to a record-extending 30th Copa America final.  

Earlier, Argentina qualified for the knockout stage after finishing at the top of the Copa America 2024 Group A standings with three wins in three matches.

La Albiceleste later beat Ecuador on penalties in the quarter-finals to seal their place in the Copa America 2024 semi-finals.

On the other hand, the Colombia national football team are currently on a 28-match unbeaten streak after they overcame Uruguay 1-0 in their Copa America 2024 semi-final clash at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Jefferson Lerma netted the match-winning goal in the 39th minute to power Colombia to their third Copa America final and first final appearance since 2001.

Led by head coach Néstor Lorenzo, Colombia have been one of the standout teams in the ongoing Copa America in the United States.

With two wins and one draw, Colombia earlier topped Copa America 2024 Group D standings with seven points, two points clear of second-placed Brazil.

The James Rodríguez-led side later thrashed Panama 5-0 to qualify for the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, Argentina will aim for their 16th Copa America title while Colombia will look to clinch their second trophy in the quadrennial tournament.   

Argentina vs Colombia head-to-head record in international football

Argentina have a dominant head-to-head record against Colombia in international football, winning 25 of the 42 matches that they have played against each other so far. Colombia have registered nine victories while as many as eight matches have ended in draws.

The last time these two sides met, Argentina pipped Colombia 1-0 in a FIFA World Cup 2022 Qualifiers at the Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Córdoba, Argentina in February 2022.

Where to watch Argentina vs Colombia Copa America 2024 live in India

Live telecast of the Argentina vs Colombia Copa America 2024 final will be on FOX Sports. 

Live streaming of the Argentina vs Colombia Copa America 2024 final will be available on FOXSports.com and the FOX Sports app. It will also be live streamed on TUDN and Univision in Spanish.

However, there will be no live telecast or streaming of the Copa America 2024 final in India.

Photo credit: Imago

As many as 17 goals were scored across six Premier League games on Saturday, with Chelsea and Crystal Palace getting 4-1 win over Sheffield United and Leeds United respectively. The most surprising result of all, however, was Manchester United' 3-1 win over Everton away from home; a game where Bruno Fernades starred to scored a brace while providing an assist to Edinson Cavani's goal. Brighton vs Burnley was the only goalless affair on the day, while Southampton secured a comfortable 2-0 win over Newcastle United despite missing Danny Ings. West Ham United, on the other hand, survived a scare to get a 1-0 win over Fulham.

These six games did produce plenty of goals combined, but there also were plenty of incidents that were simply astonishing. We take a look at five:

James Rodriguez's no-look header

Everton failed to test the Manchester United defence for a better part of the game on Saturday, but a certain James Rodriguez was able to produce some silky South American extravaganza by passing the ball with a no-look header. Liverpool's Roberto Firmino has time and again entertained the Premier League faithful with such trickery, but Rodriguez's quirk was simply one of a kind. Have a look at it yourself:

Pickford does it, AGAIN!

Days after being in the spotlight for his challenge on Virgil van Dijk, which could potentially rule him out of the season, Everton keeper Jordan Pickford dropped a free-kick right at the feet of the manchester United keeper Harry Maguire. VAR did intervene, but Michael Oliver decided not to take any action and the keeper went away without punishment.

Pickford is just a RECKLESS goalkeeper. He is on a mission to take out defenders. #Pickford #Everton #Maguire #ManchesterUnited #Premier League pic.twitter.com/mcNKudtsLk

�?Next Game (@NextGame300) November 7, 2020

Bamford's HAND was offside

After Crystal Palace had taken the lead against Leeds United, Patrick Bamford had put the game back to the square one only for his goal to be disallowed after being adjudged offside because of the change in the handball law. The 27-year-old was well and truly within the final defensive line, and the only part breaching the law was his arm; something that he simply cannot use while scoring a goal. Here's the logical explanation to why he was deemed offside:

Patrick Bramford offside because of the change in the handball law. Because you can now pay the ball with the top part of your arm the outstretched arm played him offside. This was onside last season to the armpit. #CRYLEE pic.twitter.com/EezUHdxIYQ

�?Dale Johnson (@DaleJohnsonESPN) November 7, 2020

You're a wizard, Hakim

Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech produced a sublime performance in his side's 4-1 win over Sheffield United. The former Ajax winger got two assists on the day but that certainly wasn't his only highlight of the night. Taking on Ben Osborn on the right-hand side of the field, the Morocco international left the 26-year-old completely baffled with an awe-inspiring skill while dragging the ball back before sprinting up on the field.

Hakim. sauce. #CFC pic.twitter.com/5w8oPmtUQX

�?amadí (@amadoit__) November 7, 2020

Ademola Lookman with a failed Panenka

Fulham were awarded a lifeline in the dying minutes of their away game against West Ham United after Said Benrahma brought Tom Cairney down in the box. After the away team were given a penalty, 23-year-old Ademola Lookman decided to come up for the spot-kick. The youngster attempted a cheeky chip, but with no real power in his shot, Lukasz Fabianski managed to keep it out and won the game for his team.

Ademola Lookman’s penalty miss at 0-1 down at 90+8 pic.twitter.com/ucStZFMrAs

�?Tom (@tdnightingale) November 7, 2020

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Catherin Ivill

Everton FC are one of the most influential clubs in English football history. They have featured in the top flight in a record number of 117 seasons while missing out on only four occasions. Moreover, they have been the champions nine times as well. Yet, they haven't been in the reckoning as a top Premier League club for at least the last couple of decades or so.

The reason for that can be primarily attributed to their failure of winning the title in the last three decades. The 1987-88 season was the last time Everton became the Champions of the top division of English football. The league wasn't even known as the Premier League back then. It was officially renamed as the English Premier League five seasons later in 1992-93. So Everton have gone through a 32-year title drought now and that is long enough a period for people to forget their status as a club, no matter how rich their history or legacy is.

Something different about Everton in the current season?

Everton have gone unbeaten in the five Premier League matches they have played in the ongoing season till now and that has propelled them to the top of the league table for the time being. Yes, we have seen many clubs who enjoyed such initial bursts of form in the past editions but they have eventually gone on to finish mid-table by the end of the season. However, the spark that we have seen in Everton's playing style this season is similar to that of a champion team.

Out of the five matches that they have played so far, two of them have been against top clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool. Everton faced Spurs in their opening fixture of the Premier League season and registered a clinical 1-0 win over them. And against the defending champions, they put up yet another stellar show as they drew the game 2-2. Such success can be attributed to a number of factors working together for them.

The rise of Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Everton's 23-year-old English striker, has been in sensational form since last year. He finished as their joint-top-scorer in the last Premier League season with 13 goals to his name. And as things stand five matches into the 2020/21 edition of the League now, he has netted a total seven goals, which is more than half of what he scored last time around.

The forward is far more aware of his abilities right now and has added some nice skills to his style of play as well. His chemistry with Brazilian forward Richarlison up top has always been pretty good but it seems like they have taken it up a notch in this edition. Most defences have found the Everton duo very difficult to contain and a strengthened midfield has only freed them up to do what they are best at.

The arrival of James Rodriguez

The signing of James Rodriguez from Bayern Munich was one of the main highlights for Carlo Ancelotti this season. The Colombian midfielder used to be one of his favourite players during his stint as the Real Madrid manager. Rodriguez had the best time of his career at Real Madrid under Ancelotti and it seems like the same combination is doing wonders once again.

The form of Gylfi Sigurdsson had been a major cause of concern for Everton since the last season. He was neither posing a threat to the opposition in terms of scoring nor was he able to create chances on a consistent basis for the Everton forwards. Injuries have had a lot to do with his dip in form and it left Everton crying out for a quality playmaker in their ranks. That's why the arrival of Rodriguez turned out to be such good news for the club.

Yes, he hasn't had the best of times in the last couple of years but here he had the chance of making a fresh start. And as things have panned out so far, he has grabbed his opportunity with both hands. Rodriguez has not only scored three goals in the Premier League season thus far but assisted thrice as well.

His pitch-perfect passes and through balls have helped the likes of Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison a lot and the support he has provided in offence has only taken the load off their backs. Yes, he might not be a like-for-like playmaker as Sigurdsson - the Iceland international is more of a central midfielder whereas Rodriguez mainly plays from the right side - but Everton have tweaked their style of play to accommodate Rodriguez and most of their offenses are now built from the right side of the midfield.

Abdoulaye Doucoure pulling the strings from deep inside the midfield

Even though it was the transfer of Rodriguez that created all the buzz in the transfer market for Everton, the club made an equally good signing by hiring the services of Abdoulaye Doucoure from Watford. The defensive midfielder now sits at the heart of Everton's midfield and allows the trio of Rodriguez, Richarlison and Calvert-Lewin to unleash all of their firepower on the opposition defence.

He has featured in all matches of the season so far and made some brilliant interceptions and clearances for Everton. He is quite useful in counterattacks as well. Doucoure has accounted for a total of 17 Premier League goals in his four seasons with Watford and will be eager to add more of those to his name while being at Goodison Park as well.

All of these changes have worked out pretty well for Everton so far. They seem like a champion team considering the kind of confidence they have right now and the form they are in. But a lot will depend on how far they can take this consistency forward.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Peter Byrne

We have seen some superb performances already in the Premier League 2020/21 season and a lot of them have come from players who are enjoying their maiden season in top-flight English football. Having said that, let's take a look at three newcomers who have impressed with their performances in this season thus far.

James Rodriguez (Everton)

The former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich midfielder has taken the Premier League by storm. His performances have had a massive impact on Everton's fortunes so far. The club is currently placed at the top of the Premier League table with four wins in as many matches and Rodriguez's three goals and two assists have played a big role in all those victories. Everton lacked a creative force in their midfield last season and that's why they failed to put pressure on the opposition even though their forwards, Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, were in excellent form. Rodriguez's arrival has solved that problem for them and has made Everton's attack more dangerous than ever.

Timothy Castagne (Leicester City)

The 24-year-old Belgian fullback arrived at Leicester City on a five-year deal from Atalanta and he made a terrific start to his Premier League career as he scored on his debut match against West Bromwich Albion. Castagne didn't stop there as he went on to deliver two assists in the following games against Burnley and Manchester City as well. The departure of Ben Chilwell to Chelsea had left a big void in Leicester City's defence, but Castagne looks like a perfect like-for-like replacement for Chilwell as he is not only a good defender but an equally good offensive player as well.

Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)

The 24-year-old forward arrived at Aston Villa on a five-year contract from Brentford for a club-record transfer fee of £28 million, which could rise to £33 million. While staying at Brentford, Watkins scored 26 times in a total of 50 appearances. Not only that, he scored on his debut match for Aston Villa too, which was against Burton Albion in the EFL Cup. As far as the Premier League is considered, Watkins blanked in his first two matches against Sheffield United and Fulham but his moment of fame came when he scored a hattrick in a memorable 7-2 victory over the defending champions Liverpool, in only his third Premier League match. Watkins showed tremendous pace and superb skills, thus proving himself a menace to handle for the Liverpool defenders.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Peter Powell

The third week of the Premier League was another action-packed, high octane rollercoaster ride for teams, managers and fans alike. Jamie Vardy was one of the biggest scorers last week courtesy his hat-trick against Manchester City as Leicester City beat Pep Guardiola’s men 5-2.

The upcoming week of action promises to be another exciting one and here are a few players who could help your fantasy team shine.

Player: Timothy Castagne

Team: Leicester City

Match: Leicester City vs West Ham United

Belgian full-back Timothy Castagne has hit the ground running in the Premier League after joining Leicester from Atalanta in the summer. The versatile full-back is currently one of Leicester’s most threatening attacking outlets and has been heavily involved in their goals this season.

After scoring on his debut for the Foxes, Castagne provided two assists in the team’s next league match against Burnley and another against Manchester City last week. His attacking contributions aside, Castagne is a part of a stable backline that will get you plenty of clean sheets.  

Player: James Rodriguez

Team: Everton

Match: Everton vs Brighton & Hove Albion

James Rodriguez has quickly become Everton’s talisman after joining the club in the summer. Elegant and graceful with the ball at his feet, Rodriguez never seems to be in a rush and always looks like he has more time than the opposition while in possession.

A creator of chances, most of the Toffees�?attacks have been going through the Colombian since his arrival. He’s already scored his first goal and provided his first assist for the club. One of the main reasons why Everton have won their opening three league games this season, Rodriguez’s form will be crucial if Everton are harbouring European ambitions for next season.  

Player: Mason Mount

Team: Chelsea

Match: Chelsea vs Crystal Palace

For all of Chelsea’s summer signings, it was their academy stars that bailed them out from suffering an embarrassing defeat against West Bromwich Albion last week. Trailing 3-0 at half-time, it was Mason Mount’s goal that turned the tide of the contest and helped the Blues salvage a point.

He also provided an assist against West Brom and is well trusted by manager Frank Lampard. With him likely to enjoy a lot of game time in the coming months, Mount can be expected to get his fair share of goals and assists since it’s not easy to keep him out of the action on the pitch.  

Player: Danny Ings

Team: Southampton

Match: Southampton vs West Bromwich Albion

After finishing last season with 22 league goals �?on par with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and one behind Jamie Vardy �?Danny Ings hasn’t wasted much time in finding the back of the net for Southampton in the ongoing campaign.

Ings has netted thrice in his last two league games and seems to have picked up where he left off last season. Aided by Southampton’s expansive brand of football, there’s no reason why the 28-year-old can’t enjoy another prolific campaign in England’s top-flight.

Player: Harry Kane

Team: Tottenham Hotspur

Match: Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur

Harry Kane may not be scoring goals by the dozen at the start of the 2020-21 Premier League season but surely, it’s just a matter of time before that happens. He’s scored just once in the league so far but looks poised to improve on that aspect of his game with more match sharpness.

That aside, goals aren’t the only way he’s been contributing to the team. Kane, in fact, is the leading assist-provider in the league at the moment, having set up five goals this season. He’s been involved in all of Spurs�?league goals so far and that’s unlikely to change as the season progresses.

If you wish to raise the stakes further, Sportsbet.io has even more to offer!

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Nick Potts

The agony and the joy of Fantasy football returned this past weekend.

Some managers enjoyed a fruitful game week, while other were left ruing their last-minute changes and their captain choices. The good news is that there are 37 more gameweeks atone for your errors of the opening weekend.

If you are looking your shuffle your team for the upcoming gameweek, we have suggestions that are safe, assured and likely to provide a plenty of points. Here are our top 5 picks for the second gameweek of the Premier League campaign:

Player: Bruno Fernandes

Team: Manchester United

Match: Manchester United vs Crystal Palace

Manchester United's January signing Bruno Fernandes has undoubtedly been the best player in the Premier League since the start of 2020. The Portuguese playmaker's sublime play guided Manchester United to an unlikely third place finish in the Premier League table and secured their place in this season's UEFA Champions League.

Fernandes is a point-scoring machine in fantasy football. In just 14 Premier League matches, the 26-year-old registered eight goals and seven assists, a contribution of over a goal a game. It’s a no-brainer to reinforce your midfield with Fernandes for the upcoming gameweek.

Player: Timothy Castagne

Team: Leicester City

Match: Leicester City vs Burnley

While Çağlar Söyüncü was the MVP and the must-have from Leicester City's defence last season, this year will mostly likely belong to summer signing Timothy Castagne.

The Belgian right-back, who joined from free-scoring Serie A side Atalanta, was on target on his debut against West Brom and will be Leicester's right-back for the foreseeable future in the absence of Ricardo Pereira, who is expected to be absent till 2021.

With the exception of Manchester City next week, Leicester have a rather kind fixture list in their upcoming three matches making Castagne a tantalising pick.

Player: James Rodriguez

Team: Everton

Match: Everton vs West Brom

After six years of being linked to a move to the Premier League, Colombian superstar James Rodriguez finally made the move to England and joined Everton to reunite with coach Carlo Ancelotti, who had previously managed him at Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

�?@jamesdrodriguez created five opportunities for his teammates against Spurs

That is the most by a player on their #PL debut since Alexis Sanchez back in August 2014 (5 vs Crystal Palace)#TOTEVE pic.twitter.com/byaxp0hBDl

�?Premier League (@premierleague) September 13, 2020

The 29-year-old made his debut against Tottenham Hotspur and was one of the, if not the, best players on the field, providing diagonals and dictating play from the right wing. James couldn’t register a goal or an assist on debut but his impact on the game was stellar and it’s only a matter of time before he opens his account for the Toffies.

Everton's fixture list sees them take on West Brom next, who shipped three goals against Leicester on opening weekend, followed by Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion. At his price, James is great value for your midfield.

Player: Callum Wilson

Team: Newcastle United

Match: Brighton vs Newcastle

Looking for a budget striker? Look no further than Newcastle United's Callum Wilson.

3 points and a debut goal @NUFC pic.twitter.com/J9gP0QLN9k

�?Callum Wilson (@CallumWilson) September 13, 2020

The Englishman, who joined the Magpies in the summer from Bournemouth was on target in their season opener against West Ham United and is an assured starter for Newcastle upfront.

With Brighton, Spurs and Burnley up next for Newcastle, Wilson could add great value to your starting XI.

Player: Stuart Dallas

Team: Leeds United

Match: Leeds United vs Fulham

Leeds United are perhaps the best newly-promoted side since Wolves and coach Marcelo Bielsa's men showcased that against reigning champions Liverpool, scoring three past them in a highly-entertaining game at Anfield on Saturday.

Leeds face Fulham next, who are the early favourites to be relegated, and if you've picked a Leeds player in your team, chances are they'll score a few points for you next weekend. If you haven’t, we suggest you pick fullback Stuart Dallas. The 29-year-old former winger usually plays pretty high up the field for Leeds and hence is likely to be among the points more often than not.

Dallas scored five goals and provided three assists in the Championship last season, illustrating his impact in the final third and with Leeds facing Fulham and Sheffield in their upcoming matches, chances are that the Irishman will provide a good number of points over the next two game weeks.

If you wish to raise the stakes further, Sportsbet.io has even more to offer!

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Tim Keeton

Teams across Europe continue to strengthen their rosters ahead of the new campaign. 

While there aren’t many big transfers in the offing, outside of Kai Havertz's 100 million euro move to Chelsea, due to the coronavirus pandemic, teams continue to hunt for bargains and spend within their means and add quality in their ranks.

Below, we take a look at some of the hottest transfer stories in Europe:

Messi and Pep to reunite?

After Lionel Messi dropped his bombshell announcement of his desire to leave FC Barcelona, the biggest teams across Europe scampered to figure if they can afford to sign the Argentine.

Also if Barcelona will insist to keep him and not considering his ‘free transfer clause�?as valid also right now because it was expired on June, Leo Messi will tell again to the board that he wants to leave the club. He wants to change. The battle is on. #FCB #Messi #Barça

�?Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 26, 2020

According to reports, the team leading the race for his signature are Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. The Cityzens are keen on reuniting Messi with the coach that helped Messi capture four Ballon D'Or awards on the trot, Pep Guardiola. 

Guardiola has failed to win the Champions League without Messi and the Argentine's signature could finally be what ends the Cityzens long wait for the UEFA Champions League crown.

Everton close in on James Rodriguez

Everton look set to beat the rest of the chasing pack and sign Colombian playmaker James Rodriguez from Real Madrid.

James Rodriguez heading to Everton and reunion for Carlo Ancelotti, talks over a permanent deal with Real Madrid are close to being concluded...big move for The Toffees and clear Ancelotti is getting his way after being given more control.

�?Graeme Bailey (@GraemeBailey) August 25, 2020

Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti was the Real Madrid coach when James made the switch to the Bernabeu from Monaco and then signed the Colombian on loan when he was the coach at Bayern Munich. 

Ancelotti is keen on signing James for the third time in five years as the 29-year-old’s tumultuous spell in Madrid seems to finally be coming to a close.

Matt Doherty signs for Tottenham Hotspur

Wolverhampton Wanderers' standout fullback Matt Doherty had completed a surprise switch to North London and joined Jose Mourinho's Tottenham Hotspur in a deal worth 15 million pounds. 

Last details to be completed then Matt Doherty will sign as new Tottenham player. Total agreement to be reached soon with Wolves. Tottenham are still in talks with AC Milan to sell Serge Aurier. ⚪️ #THFC #Wolves #transfers

�?Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 27, 2020

The 28-year-old has been at the Molineux for eight years and has been a key figure in Wolves' rise over the past three campaigns. 

Doherty will replace Serge Aurier, who is closing in on a move to AC Milan.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Josep Lago

Once a murder capital of the world, Columbia slowly rose to become one of the safest tourist spots on the globe. The country had seen its fair share of problems as drug cartels once instilled fear among the locals while the government officials were bribed or assassinated to cater to the will of the drug lords.

In order to clean their money earned through illegal means, the drug mafias started investing in football and contributed to bringing the Colombian football at the international stage. An own goal against USA in the 1994 FIFA World Cup was enough for the drug cartels to assassinate Colombia’s captain Andres Escobar.

During these turbulent times, James Rodriguez, an attacking midfielder came into the picture as a heroic performance in the 2014 FIFA World Cup introduced his talent to the entire world. But his rise to fame had a secret attached with Columbia’s most notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar’s personal favourite, Gustavo Upegui.

Upegui once spoke about his bond with Escobar stating that: “In the 60’s, when my family moved to the neighbourhood of La Paz (in Envigado), diagonal to my residence lived the family of Mr Abel Escobar and Mrs Hermilda Gaviria. Pablo was a member of this family (�? In that childhood, we shared a passion for cycling and football. My family moved in 1971 and I did not see Pablo again until 1980, when we participated in political and cultural activities, such as civility on the move and lighting of sports venues.�?/p>

Gustavo reportedly played a big role in helping Pablo setting up many fronts for his criminal activities and while he was serving his sentence, it was Gustavo who handled all of Pablo’s business.

Gustavo’s first foray into the football business was buying a local football club named, Envigado FC. This club went on to become an epitome of developing home-grown Columbian talents and slowly turned into the hub for youth development. During one of his visits to scout talent and train them, Gustavo spotted a certain 11-year-old James Rodriguez who scored two goals directly from a corner.

James was then representing Academia Tolimense and without any further ado, Gustavo made an offer for the youngster. The club hesitated at first but finally allowed the teen prodigy to leave with Gustavo.

James got his big break at the tender age of 14 when Gustavo told Envigado FC’s manager to hand him a number 10 shirt as well as give him his debut. Sadly, for the club, Gustavo was assassinated only a month after James made his debut. James�?two years tenure with Envigado FC was more than fruitful as he led the club to play in Columbia’s first division.

Argentinian club Banfield eventually came calling and offered £250,000 for James. Winning the league at the mere age of 17, James also became the youngest foreigner to score a goal in Argentina. After two-and-a-half successful years with Banfield, James was signed by Porto for �?.1 million. His stint at Porto led to many offers from the big guns of European football. James ended up with Real Madrid in 2014 and has been one of the most prominent footballers of modern times.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Raul Arboleda