And here is the mandatory preview of La Gran Finale. Argentina are of course the favourites, in terms of the way they have played, and the squad of players that they have - Riquelme, Messi, Mascherano, Tevez and Crespo have been exceptional.

And Brazil? Well, if there is such a thing as "lesser favourites", then that is what they are. They may have left their stars at home, but you can't discount the tradition and strength of the gold shirt, and the record they have over Argentina in recent years - they've beaten them 2-2 (penalties) in the last Copa America final, 4-1 in the Confederations Cup final, and 3-0 in a friendly at the Emirates Stadium last September.

The main issue of course is the midfield battle.

Argentina's Midfield
Argentina have Riquelme floating around and playing ahead of Veron, who is in front of a solid (and talented) base of Mascherano and Cambiasso. "Masch" is a midfield destroyer of the highest quality - a keen reader of the game, a sharp tackler, and a player who is quick and skilful enough to win the ball and then move it around well. Next to him Cambiasso is a constant, dogged workman, always running and tackling, and deceptively skillful. He loves to get upfield, and is able to combine very effectively to form intricate little passing moves with the attacking players.

Riquelme has been (arguably) the star of the tournament. Playing in front of a central three has allowed him to float around and get forward, and with the strikers drifting wide he has been able to make runs into the box, and duy picked up 4 goals. However, the biggest difference to this Argentine midfield has been the inclusion of Juan Sebastian Veron. Till now, they way to stop Argentina was to stop Riquelme - he was deeper in the midfield, and EVERYTHING went through him. It was brilliant a lot of the time, but when Riquelme went missing, so did Argentina. Veron changes all that.

Once a midfield playmaker of as much reknown as Riquelme (if not more), Veron went through some rough patches, and ended up in the infamous "International wilderness". Now back in Argentina, rejuvenated and playing with Estudiantes, Veron has made his country resurgent once more. Adopting a deeper role, he takes a lot of the playmaking pressure off JRR, and when the Boca man is being marked out of the game, the passes can flow through Veron as well. This works both ways, since with Veron as an auxilliary playmaker, and Messi floating around everywhere, teams can't afford to mark Riquelme too tightly and he gets a lot more space.

Brazil's Midfield
Brazil have been continually criticised by their own fans and media throughout this tournament, and their uninspiring midfield has taken the biggest rap. Coach Dunga has steadfastly refused to change his strategy, much to the frustration of an entire nation, but he has got results with it. In fact, this final maybe the game that he has been building upto all along. He angered fans by playing Gilberto Silva, Mineiro, Josue and Julio Baptista in the same midfield, especially against "lesser" teams, but having four hard-workers might just be the answer to stopping Argentina's "unstoppable" midfield. They must work their hardest, denying time and space to the likes of Riquelme and Veron, and trying to win the ball back as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, the plans have been thrown somewhat into disarray by the suspension of captain Gilberto Silva for the final. He has been an everpresent thus far, and the lack of direct replacements is a worry. The only other defensive midfielder in the squad is Fernando, a youngster who plays for Bordeaux, and is rated as one for the future, but has almost no international experience. Giving him his first competitive start in the final of the Copa America against Argentina would be a bit too much. Especially for a player whom most of the fans and media feel shouldn't even be in the squad.

So Brazil must rethink. They have a few options: 1. Retain the shape, and gave Fernando a go, 2. Slot Josue into Gilberto's role, and Baptista into Josue's with Diego playing in Baptista's attacking role (like against Mexico), or 3. Put Elano in as an alternative to Diego.

Having seen the training sessions of late, I feel it will be Elano who comes in. In fact, at the start of Dunga's reign, it was the Ukraine-based attacker who had provided a lot of the attacking threat, cutting in from the right. He is not a playmaker like Diego, but he is a fantastic finisher with both feet, with quick, clever movement off-the-ball. He is a hard-worker, and not afraid to tackle, and although he is not going to win the ball too often, he will be a more solid option. Diego is a player who likes to hold on to the ball and dictate the play. He can be magical on his day, but can also be a luxury player who doesn't like to put in the hard work.

Strikers
Both teams are evenly matched, although Argentina have the greatest talent in Messi.  Robinho is not far behind, although his talent is more unrefined, but he has scored 6 goals. Tevez partners Messi upfront, although both tend to stay wide - Messi cutting in from the right, Tevez cutting in from the left, but both switching positions quite often. For Brazil, Wagner Love partners Robinho. He is not as brilliant as any of the other forwards mentioned, but his strength, intelligence and hold-up play are unique, and allow Robinho the freedom to roam around and wreak havoc.

Defences
Argentina have the stronger defence overall, with top-class (and vastly experienced) performers Zanetti, Ayala, Milito and Heinze forming the back four. However Brazil have the tournament's best centre-back in Juan, who forms a solid partnership with Alex. At fullback they have Maicon and Gilberto on either flank. Although they are much more inexperienced than Argentina, Maicon and Gilberto are excellent going forward, and offer much more attacking threat than Zanetti and Heinze.

Goalkeeper Abbondanzieri is the best that Argentina have, and Doni is probably the worst that Brazil could have sent, but there is not that much of a gulf between the two. Doni is a very weird 'keeper who makes mistakes, but also makes spectacular saves.

And that's it from me! Enjoy the final, I know i'm excited about it, and I will bring you updates from the game.

79 goals in 24 maches so far in this Copa America. An astonishing avarage of  3.2 goals per game. But these three, from Robinho, Suazo and Messi were remarkable. Watch them again and vote for the best.

Robinho - 3rd. goal vs Chile - group stage 

Suazo- consolation goal after 6 x 1 Brasilian victory in quarter

Messi - rd. goal vs Mexico in semi