With six matches still to play, Brazil leads with 27 points, followed by Uruguay on 23, Ecuador and Chile on 20 and Argentina on 19. Colombia lingers close behind in sixth place with 18 points.

This series of lost finals, however, have led Argentina to wonder what will happen with its current generation of stars, mulling the end of their careers. Although Messi remains for now, questions surround the future of Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Javier Mascherano and Angel di Maria.

However, rising stars such as Paulo Dybala of Juventus and Lucas Pratto of Atletico Mineiro also bring a note of hope.

At the end of the year, another news shocked football fans when Carlos Tevez left Boca Juniors to join China's Shanghai Shenhua, where he will earn an eye-watering 760,000 U.S. dollars a week.

President Mauricio Macri himself lamented the departure of "Apache" but hoped that Tevez' skill and charisma could help improve relations between Argentina and China.

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