MARACAIBO, Venezuela: Argentina's mercurial playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme performed one of his notorious disappearing acts on Sunday as his side floundered against Brazil, losing 3-0 in the Copa America final.

Riquelme had pulled the strings in midfield, scoring five times, as Argentina won all five games and scored 16 goals on their way to final.

The team arrived at Sunday's match as hot favorites to beat Brazil and end its 14-year wait for title, stretching back to the 1993 Copa America in Ecuador.

But, not for the first time, Riquelme froze on the big occasion as Argentina was muscled out by the ruthless, physical Brazilians.

He had Argentina's two best efforts, hitting the post in the ninth minute - an incident that could have changed the face of the game - and forcing an outstanding save from Doni when Brazil were only 1-0 ahead.

But it was a disappointing contribution from a player who had been expected to control the game.

Riquelme found himself repeatedly shoved off the ball, making little attempt to stay on his feet.

He insisted on taking nearly all of Argentina's free kicks, but on nearly every occasion he lofted a high ball into the middle of the area which was easily dealt with by Brazil's powerful central defenders.

He was clearly off the pace and on several occasions appeared to pull out of challenges for 50-50 balls.

Coaches divided

Riquelme's tendency to drift out of matches has divided Argentine critics down the middle while coaches tend either to build their team around him or ditch him altogether.

He was left out of the 2002 World Cup squad but four years later in Germany, Jose Pekerman built the team around him.

Riquelme pulled all the strings in the memorable 6-0 win over Serbia & Montenegro in the first round, when he was voted man of the match.

But he ran out of inspiration in the crunch quarterfinal against Germany when Argentina needed him most and they lost on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

He then quit the national team in September, saying criticism of his performances had affected his mother's health.

After leading Boca Juniors to the Libertadores Cup triumph earlier this year, Riquelme accepted a recall.

Once again, it was a similar story in Venezuela as he produced five superb performances, followed by a flop when it mattered the most.

The debate about his role in the team is likely to become even more heated than before.

Agencies

(China Daily 07/17/2007 page23)