In the opening match of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers for South America, the Argentina team won 1-0 against Ecuador. The hero of the Tango team is still Lionel Messi.
Messi shows destructive form at Inter Miami last time. Excitement followed El Pulga when the player returned to the Argentina team. In the opening match of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers for South America, Messi continued to be the hero, helping the Tango team win a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Ecuador.
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Messi celebrates a goal after a super free kick
Going into this match, coach Scaloni launched a 4-3-3 formation with the attacking trio Lautaro Martinez, Messi and Nico Gonzalez. Not surprisingly, La Albiceleste rushed to attack after the opening whistle.
In the 16th minute, Argentina had the first dangerous opportunity. Lautaro Martinez released the ball for Messi to quickly score from outside the penalty area. The ball narrowly missed Ecuador’s goal. In the following minutes, Messi and his teammates encountered many difficulties with Ecuador’s pressing style.
In the remaining minutes of the first half, Argentina was in deadlock and could not create any dangerous opportunities. In the second half, the Tango team increased the pressure, but the Ecuadorian players played hard and stopped Messi quite well.
Argentina won the match with a score of 1-0 against Ecuador
Like the first half, Argentina fell into a deadlock. Occasionally, El Pulga has space. In the 69th minute, Messi dribbled the ball alone in front of a series of Ecuadorian players and scored very quickly. However, this shot was not dangerous enough to defeat goalkeeper Galindez.
In the context of Argentina’s difficulties, Messi transformed into a hero. In the 78th minute, La Albiceleste received a free kick right next to the penalty area. Superstar number 10 performed a beautiful arc free kick. The ball hit Ecuador’s net with goalkeeper Galindez helpless.
In the last minutes, Messi left the field. Argentina plays slowly to preserve results. They maintained the score 1-0 until the end of the match.