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By Nick Dorrington (@chewingthecoca)

It turns out that James Rodriguez is human after all.

The Colombia attacking midfielder was converted into an almost mystical figure after taking to the pitch to score one and assist the other in a 2-1 win over Paraguay just a few days after suffering a serious-looking shoulder injury in their opening-day victory. But even he was unable to rescue his side as a half-time substitute against Costa Rica on Saturday, as a second-string XI fell to a 3-2 defeat that saw Los Cafeteros cede top spot in Group A to the United States.

Colombia came into the Copa America Centenario with the clear intention of using the tournament as an opportunity to continue the changing of the guard that they had initiated during their early World Cup qualifiers. Coach Jose Pekerman selected the third youngest squad in the competition, with as many as seven of his 23 expected to go on and also represent their country at the Rio 2016 Olympics in August.

The need for regeneration had been made clear during last year's Copa America in Chile. Just 12 months after impressing in reaching the last eight of the World Cup, Colombia limped to a quarter-final exit after scoring just once in four matches, with James among those who failed to spark. His improvement this time around is a function of both changed personnel and a structure that better suits his strengths.

Rodriguez's breakthrough at the 2014 World Cup came as a central attacking midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 formation and it is in that system that he has already provided two goals and an assist in the United States. In Rodriguez, Juan Cuadrado, Edwin Cardona and Carlos Bacca, Colombia possess a front four with a varied and complementary set of skills, who are capable of stretching and then working their way through most forms of defence.

And in Rodriguez they have a player who is clearly fired up to perform after enduring a frustrating season at Real Madrid. In the aftermath of the win over Paraguay he said that he was ready to play for Colombia "until lame,” and while that may be an attitude that has a detrimental effect on his next club season given that he is putting off shoulder surgery to continue playing, it is one that is certainly benefiting his country.

If Colombia have had a weakness in this tournament, it has been that of their star. Rodriguez is a very vertical player -- a fusion of sharp combination play, swift dribbling and sweetly struck shots -- and hasn't yet displayed the necessary attributes to provide control when it is required. Likewise, Colombia are a team who struggle to effectively manage possession and space in order to see out matches in a comfortable manner.

There are changes that can be made to fix that from a defensive standpoint -- the introduction of Carlos Sanchez to partner Daniel Torres in midfield being the most obvious -- while Cardona has provided more control in possession on the couple of occasions he has been switched with Rodriguez into the central attacking midfield zone, but if one was to pinpoint one reason why Colombia won't win this tournament then that would be it.

Next on the agenda is a likely repeat of their fractious 2014 World Cup quarter-final against Brazil. That was a match that ended in tears for Rodriguez after his influence was stifled by physical defending. He can expect similar treatment if the sides do again meet, but with the skill and persistence he has shown thus far it could very well be a smile that instead breaks out across his face when the final whistle sounds on Friday.