Hear
A stopped ball, three minutes from time, defined the match between the teams of Argentina and Chili. Lionel Messi took a corner – the second in a row, after attempting an Olympic goal that was thwarted by Claudio Bravo -, the Chilean goalkeeper avoided the goal in the first instance after the ball hit Lisandro Martínez’s back, but after a defender’s cut clearance, Lautaro Martínez appeared to define unceremoniously and score the only goal of the game.
There was some uncertainty, because the VAR drew lines to verify that Giovani Lo Celso was not ahead. Lionel Scaloni and the entire Argentine bank were celebrating on account. The same was true for El Toro, who went straight to the stands to shout his goal, which was worth three points but, above all, was worth qualification to the quarterfinals. The story for Argentina, now, is to know if it will be first in the group or second: everything will depend on what happens on Saturday with Peru. And what Canada does, the only one that can reach it, against Chile.
Lautaro Martínez had entered just a few minutes earlier in Julián Álvarez’s place, the same change as against Canada in the debut. And as against his initial rival, the Inter striker once again wrote his name on the scoreboard. That time, in Atlanta, he made it 2-0. This Tuesday, in the heat of New Jersey, El Toro’s conquest served for the final 1-0. The forward trained in Racing has two goals in the Copa América from the substitute bench (and five in his last five games): two goals in just 33 minutes of play, since against Canada he played 15 minutes and against Chile he did so for 18 In both matches he replaced Julián Álvarez. The last substitute he had converted in his first two games as a substitute had been the Paraguayan Salvador Cabañas in the 2007 Copa América.
In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Martínez had the second Argentine goal and his own. Because Di María led a counterattack with Chile playing in attack and the victory served the forward trained in Racing. Claudio Bravo, stainless, risked his humanity. Martínez tried a subtlety and the trans-Andean goalkeeper guessed his intention. It seemed like an easy play to resolve, but the Chilean goalkeeper avoided making it 2-0. There was no time for more: Martínez ended up being decisive and with his goal Argentina is in the quarterfinals. The first objective is achieved.
“It stayed there and I was able to convert. These games are like that. They are all going to be complicated. We have to continue like this. Everything closed. They set up lines of five and it gets a little complicated. We are happy. We ended up taking the three points, which was what we wanted. This is my family. I play for them, for my children, my wife, my mom, my dad.. They are the ones who suffer. I went to look for them,” said Lautaro Martínez after the game. El Toro reached 26 goals and He is the second highest scorer of the Scaloni cycleonly behind Messi (43) and ahead of Angel Di Maria (eleven), Julian Alvarez (8), Nicolas Gonzalez (5), Enzo Fernandez (4) and Leandro Paredes (4).
More from the scorer Inter, who little by little begins to be decisive in the national team as he is in his team, champion of Italy. “You always want to play, but you have to respect the coach’s decisions. When I enter I try to demonstrate. When I score with this shirt I go home happy: all the goals are important, but this way you enjoy it twice as much,” Martínez said in TyC Sports. And he added, about the play of the only goal of the game: “It stayed there… Intuition”. And about the last chance, which Bravo miraculously blocked, El Toro said: “When I wanted to finish, the defender touched me.” And the 2-0 play slipped away. But there was no time for more and the world champions were left 1-0 and qualified for the quarterfinals. On Saturday, in Miami -the city that enjoys Messi- will know if they are first or second in the group. And if they travel to Houston or Dallas for the first qualifying match of this Copa América, in which they seek to retain the title.
THE NATION
