Five more to go, and two down. Furthermore, Argentina has all but guaranteed a place in the Copa America quarterfinals.
In front of an electrifying 81,106 spectators at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday night, Argentina defeated Chile 1-0 thanks to a deflected corner kick by Lionel Messi that resulted in a goal by Lautaro Martinez in the 88th minute.
Messi failed to score in a Copa America game for the second straight day, the day after his 37th birthday. Despite the fact that his corner kick resulted in the game-winning goal, he did not receive an assist either.
More importantly, Messi completed the game even though a trainer had given him a massage on the sidelines in the 25th minute in his right groin area. A player from the opposite team got hurt, therefore he took use of the opportunity to heal himself ten minutes after the initial injury.
Messi might not play in Argentina's third group play match against Peru on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, according to Argentine news source TYCSports.
After the game, Messi expressed his optimism that his injury was not serious.
In the 36th minute, Messi had a golden opportunity to score; he fired a left boot that just missed the right post. Leading Argentina's aggressive effort in the second half, he played a crucial role.
Argentina and Chile came dangerously close to a scoreless draw in their Copa America semifinal matchups in 2015 and 2016, with Chile winning both games.
Dibu Martinez, the Argentine goalie, had a less hectic day, stopping Chile's three attempts on goal during the encounter. However, until Martinez's goal, Peruvian goaltender Claudio Bravo, who was teammates with Messi at FC Barcelona from 2014 to 2016, blocked 21 of Argentina's 22 shots in the game.
Argentina leads Canada (three), Chile (one), and Peru (one) in Group A with six points. As a result, Messi may get a break for Saturday's game against Peru at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
The last group-play games for each team will go place on Saturday, with Chile playing Canada.
Goal for Lautaro Martúnez: Argentina 1, Chile 0 Argentina at last achieves successLeo Messi's corner kick was diverted, but Lauturo Martinez was there at the perfect moment...
Argentina appears ready to defeat Chile 1-0 and advance to the Copa America quarterfinal after Martinez scored in the 88th minute. The goal was verified following a more than two-minute-long VAR.
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