Before the Copa America, coach Lionel Scaloni made the Argentina’s starting eleven without Messi in the preparatory match against Ecuador. At the beginning, Argentina looked a bit disorganized, but then they got hold of themselves right. The team’s winning goal also came in the first half. That too from the feet of veteran Angel di Maria.
Messi came on the field in the second half. There were tactical changes in Argentina’s team. But the world champions did not see the goal. Ecuador’s five-man defence was repeatedly tested by Argentina. It cannot be said that Messi-Lautaro was very fluent. In the end, Di Maria’s 1 goal in the 39th minute won the sweaty victory for Argentina.
ÁNGEL DI MARÍA SCORES AND IT’S 1-0 ARGENTINA! 🇦🇷pic.twitter.com/0VJRFDBaEm
— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) June 9, 2024
At the beginning, Argentina looked a bit in tight spot, but then they got themselves right. And it didn’t take long to see the Argentinian goal.
Match highlight and goals
Alvarez’s took the first on-target shot in the 26th minute of the match. In the next 15 minutes, Scaloni’s team went on the attack again and again. Results come in 40th minutes of the match. Christian Romero got the pass from Rodrigo de Paul from the midfield.
Angel Di Maria stepped forward with his short through ball from the edge of the box. The experienced forward then gave a great finish. Argentina took the lead before the break. At the very end of the first half, Argentina received a free kick outside the box. However, Di Maria’s shot hit the goal post and disappointed the Argentine fans.
Messi entered the field at the beginning of the second half. He was accompanied by two other forwards Nicolas Gonzales and Angel Correa. There is some discussions are going on about whether or not these two will be in Argentina’s Copa squad. Coach Scaloni will surely have an eye on the performance of today’s match. But, none of the two forwards could give much confidence by their performance in the match.
Ecuador tested Argentina well in the battle for possession the golden ball. However, they did not do their job properly while keeping on-target shots. Only twice took shot at the goal of Ecuador. No goal came from that either. A win by 1-0 in the end brought some anxiety for Argentina ahead of the Copa America.
The match featured a lot of hard tackles, fouls, and even a few yellow cards, keeping referee Drew Fischer busy all night. Ecuador were whistled for 20 fouls while Argentina was whistled for 15, with many taking place without a whistle being blown.
Player of the match
Angel Di Maria grabbed the title of the player of the match. He took his goal wonderfully in the match, hit the bar with a free-kick soon after. An excellent hour of work.

Argentina continued its winning start to 2024 with a solid, if not spectacular, victory in Chicago.
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