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Argentina Messi settled for a convincing draw with its guesthouse Paraguay

(MENAFN – Alghad Newspaper) Mudon – Argentina missed their first points in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers, when they overcame their guest Paraguay to a 1-1 draw, on Thursday in the third round in the South America region.
After defeating Ecuador (1-0) and then Bolivia (2-1), Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, the best player in the world six times, faced a higher-level team that succeeded in snatching a tie point from the champions of 1978 and 1986.
Despite the equalizer, Argentina produced a convincing performance and were close to victory, were it not for the video assistant referee’s interference and Messi depriving him of the winning goal in the second half.
Argentina raised its score to 7 points from three games, and its lead is threatened, in the event that Brazil (6) won over Venezuela yesterday.
At the “La Bombonera” stadium in the capital, Buenos Aires, without fans due to restrictions preventing the outbreak of the new Corona virus, Paraguay got a penalty in the middle of the first half, after Lucas Martinis Quarta stood in the face of Miguel Almiron, translated by Angel Romero as the floor in the goal of Franco Armani (22) , Scoring his third goal in the qualifiers.
But the host, who was missed by strikers Sergio Agüero and Paulo Dybala, just before entering the dressing rooms, from a corner kick by Giovanni Lucelso, substitute for the injured young Ezequiel Palacios in the first half, was cut by a strong header of Stuttgart German Nicholas Gonzales (22 years) from the edge of the small area ( 40).
“In Germany, I played as a left back with a defensive line of five or four players. We know he is not central, but I try to help the team from anywhere,” said Gonzalez (4 caps), who played in a late position in midfield.
And this is the first vertical goal resulting from a direct corner, scored by Argentina in 20 years in World Cup qualifiers.
“After the penalty kick, we were the best party, especially in the second half,” said her coach, Lionel Scaloni. “Despite the lack of victory, we must draw the positives from this performance.”
Argentina acquired the ball (68%) in exchange for Paraguayan high fitness and pressure on the ball carrier.
Lautaro Martinez and Lucas Ocampos searched for Messi supplies, while the returnee, Angel Di Maria, entered the last half hour to play his 103rd international match.
But the Barcelona striker, who had doubts about his participation in an ankle injury, created opportunities for his teammates, especially Inter striker Martinez, and shook the net, before the video assistant referee intervened to calculate a foul fifty meters away that prevented “Albicelesti” progress (57).
The crossbar also repelled a far free kick by Messi in the 72nd minute, to end the match in a draw before Argentina’s confrontation with its host Peru on Tuesday.
Argentine central defender Nicolas Otamendi said after the match, “I think we were not on our side in the first half because of the pressure, but after our success in circling the ball and finding holes, we spent most of the second half at their home.”
On the other hand, Paraguay remained unbeaten, raising its score to 5 points from 3 matches. Alberoja has only lost an orphan once in the last seven matches against Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers.
“I salute the efforts of our players. It was a demanding match from a defensive standpoint. Argentina prevented us from finding loopholes,” said Argentine coach Eduardo Perizzo.
In a second match the day before yesterday, Ecuador continued its revival by defeating its host Bolivia 3-2 in La Paz.
Bolivia was the first to score through Juan Carlos Arsi in the 37th minute, but the visitors responded strongly at the beginning of the second half with two goals by left defender Peder Caicedo (46) and the Mexican midfielder Angel Mina Delgado (55).
But the guests’ joy only lasted five minutes, as the veteran Brazilian Cruzeiro striker Marcelo Martinez Moreno managed to equalize (50).
At the time when the match was breathing its last, Ecuador got a penalty kick after a handball on defender Adrian Josino, which was confirmed after resorting to the video assistant referee “VAR”, so Augsburg German midfielder Carlos Grueso successfully scored the winning goal (88) .
This is the first time that Ecuador achieved a victory away from home in the qualifiers after being late in the first half, putting an end to five successive losses outside their home country.
“(The result) sums up this team that is always looking to win. We deserve this victory,” said Ecuadorean coach Gustavo Alvaro.
It is the second consecutive victory for Ecuador, after the first at its home in Uruguay, 4-2 in the second round, after losing to Argentina 0-1 in the first round.
On the other hand, bottom Bolivia suffered its third loss in succession after the first to its host Brazil by five clean, and the second against its guest Argentina 1-2, remaining in the last place without a score. – (AFP)

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