If Lionel Messi had a birthday wish, it would surely be to win a major trophy with Argentina. But as Barcelona's brilliant forward turns 32, that prospect is increasingly less likely.
Argentina advanced to the quarter-finals of the Copa America on Sunday night, courtesy of a hard-fought and unconvincing 2-0 win over invitees Qatar which saw the Albiceleste progress in second spot behind Colombia, with just four points.
After losing their opening game to Colombia, Argentina improved in a 1-1 draw with Paraguay but needed a somewhat contentious penalty to score in that match. Against Qatar, a side ranked 44 placed below the South Americans in the FIFA rankings, there were goals from open play. And there was a win. But there were not too many more positives.
Messi looked isolated again and the five-time Ballon d'Or winner did not even manage an effort on goal until the 81st minute. Moments later, Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero wrapped up a crucial victory, with Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez having opened the scoring after just four minutes.
Argentina now face Venezuela in the quarter-finals and in normal circumstances, the Albiceleste would be big favourites. But the Vinotinto are unbeaten in their three games so far in the Copa, which included a goalless draw against hosts Brazil. They also beat Argentina 3-1 in a friendly in Madrid back in March.
The presence of Messi means there is always hope for Argentina's fans, but this team is a long way behind the Albiceleste sides of 2014 to 2016, which lost three consecutive finals: the 2014 World Cup showpiece against Germany in extra time and back-to-back Copas versus Chile on penalties.
Those teams featured the excellent Javier Mascherano in midfield and Gonzalo Higuain at his best in attack, even though the 31-year-old will be remembered for missing when it mattered most.
In Alejandro Sabella and later Gerardo Martino, Argentina were well coached too. Now, though, there appears to be no discernible plan and Scaloni, a rookie manager, is not even among the best Argentina coaches. At this point, in fact, he is probably inferior to the other two Argentine coaches at the Copa America
This is not a great generation of players, either, and only Giovani Lo Celso, at times, has shown glimpses of being on the same wavelength as Messi. The team is disjointed, the defence disorganised and a lack of stability and direction from AFA at institutional level has impacted negatively on the team.
If Argentina can get past Venezuela, a probable semi-final against Brazil awaits on July 2nd. But on current form, it would take a minor miracle for the Albiceleste to beat the hosts.
Messi has won it all with Barcelona, but as he celebrates his 32nd birthday, a major trophy with Argentina appears more distant than ever before
