Will Ecuador be able to stop Argentina when the defending champion is in good form, not to mention superstar Messi has also recovered from injury?
In contrast to the instability of their arch-rival Brazil, the Argentinian national team is still making steady progress on its journey to defend the Copa America title .
In the group stage, “The Tango Dancers” won all 3 matches, scored 5 goals and did not concede any. That partly shows the superior strength of Argentina despite facing opponents that were not “easy to deal with” (Canada, Chile, Peru).
Above all, Argentina’s famous stars also played excellently as expected. Lionel Messi contributed 1 assist, besides creating 10 dangerous opportunities and an accurate passing rate of up to 92%, while Lautaro Martinez led the list of top scorers (4 goals).
Of course, that doesn’t mean Argentina is a perfect “machine”. According to statistics, all 5 goals of the defending champion came in the second half. Obviously, Messi and his teammates need to learn how to “finish” their opponents early to prevent unfortunate risks from happening.
Argentina’s next opponent is Ecuador. Coach Felix Sanchez and his team entered the quarter-finals with second place in Group B (4 points/3 matches) and an unconvincing performance.
In terms of head-to-head record, Argentina completely dominates their opponents with 24 wins, 11 draws and only 5 losses. Since the 0-2 loss in the 2015 World Cup group stage, the “Tango Dancers” have gone 7 matches unbeaten, even winning 6 against Ecuador.
Argentina’s biggest headache right now is Messi’s fitness. The 37-year-old superstar missed the final group stage match due to a hamstring injury, but has participated in all training sessions this week. Meanwhile, key players such as Alexis Mac Allister, Julian Alvarez, Rodrigo De Paul all had a full rest in the final group stage match and are completely healthy going into the upcoming match.
With high form and high spirits, victory and a ticket to the semi-finals are within reach for coach Lionel Scaloni and his team if they play at their best.
