In Copa América debut, Argentina overcomes and defeats Canada

This Thursday (20), Argentina and Canada faced each other at the Mercedez-Benz Stadium, in Atlanta, to open the Copa América games. Participants in group A, the teams compete with Peru and Chile for places in the next phase, where the first two placed will be classified.

As usual, the Argentine team was predestined to win the match. Against its opponents, it is the favorite of the championship and, in addition, the current champion of the Copa América.

First step

During the first 45 minutes of the game, the Argentines controlled the ball well, giving Canada fewer chances. Both teams had several clear chances to score, but all were unsuccessful. While Argentina had possession of almost the entire field, in its own way, the Canadian team tried to fit more into the game.

After just seven minutes, Lionel Messi tried a very risky shot from outside the area, but was unsuccessful. From this moment on, the Argentine team found themselves in the opening to try to finish more, where other players insisted on their attempts. Faced with many counterattacks and attempted goals, the first half ended with no goals for the teams.

Second half with goals

The final stage of the match began with Argentina's first goal, just three minutes into the second half. With a pass from Messi, Julián Álvarez, with a crossed shot, opened the scoring in Atlanta.

With around twelve minutes left in the match, Lionel Messi found himself alone in the area, facing the goalkeeper, but was prevented from continuing his play by the goalkeeper himself, who deflected his possible goal. Even without scoring, Messi was one of the biggest highlights of the game, with countless goal attempts, sometimes prevented by the opposing team, sometimes lost.

The last Argentine goal occurred with just two minutes left in the match, scored by Martínez, which took away from the Canadian team any expectation of victory, or even a draw, that still remained. The game ended 2-0 for the current champions.

Esordio con victorio per l'Argentina in Copa America. Score with goal for Lautaro Martinez pic.twitter.com/WgDwhDNrbx

— Daniele Mari (@marifcinter) June 21, 2024

_{Goal scored by Martínez in the last minutes (Video: reproduction/X/@marifcinter)}

Post-confrontation table

Argentina leads with the three points they won, while Canada is at the bottom of the group with no points. The Peru and Chile teams have not yet played any matches, therefore, they also have zero points.

Featured photo: Lautaro Martínez, scorer of the team's last goal (Reproduction/Getty Images Embed)