Argentina cement Copa favouritism

Premier League / Editor / 29 June 2007 / Leave a Comment

Pre-tournament favourites Argentina started their Copa America campaign with an impressive 4-1 success over the USA.

Having traded at 2.82, Alfio Basile's men are now on offer at 2.04 to win their 15th Copa America title after a crushing victory in their opening game.

It was the USA who took the lead in Maracaibo, with Eddie Johnson converting a ninth-minute penalty.

But the advantage only last two minutes, as Hernan Crespo grabbed his first goal of the evening from close range.

Crespo then put Argentina in front on 64 minutes after a through ball from Lionel Messi, before Pablo Aimar headed in a third. West Ham's Carlos Tevez, who came on as a substitute, completed the scoring in the closing stages.

Despite their win, Argentina are not Group C leaders as Paraguay beat Colombia 5-0 mainly thanks to hat-trick from Roque Santa Cruz. Argentina are 1.4 favourites to win the group with Paraguay trading at 3.5 and USA and Colombia on offer at 11 and 16 respectively.

Meanwhile, Crespo heads Betfair's 'Top Goalscorer' market at 1.6 with Santa Cruz now available at 4.2.