Copa America: Substitute Martinez saves Argentina and leads it to the quarter-finals
26 June 2024
A goal by Inter Milan's striker, Lautaro Martinez, saved his country's national team Argentina the defending champion, from the trap of a goalless draw against Chile, leading it to a 1-0 victory on Tuesday at "MetLife Stadium" in East Rutherford, in front of 82,000 spectators,
With this victory Argentina secured the first ticket to the quarter-finals of the Copa America competition held in the United States at the end of the second round of the first group competitions.
Martinez scored the only goal of the match in the 88th minute, a quarter of an hour after he replaced Manchester City striker Julian Alvarez.
It is Martinez's second goal in the tournament after the first against Canada in the second round. It is the second successive victory for Argentina after defeating Canada 2-0 in the first round, strengthening its lead with six points, three points ahead of Canada, which beat Peru 1-0.
On the other hand, Chile suffered its first loss after a goalless draw with Peru in the first round, and they fell to last place by one point.
In the third round and final round of the group stage, Argentina will meet Peru, and Chile will meet Canada.