Defending champion Argentina entered the quarterfinals of Copa America 2021 only to meet underdog Ecuador at NRG Stadium, Houston at 8:00 a.m. (Vietnam time) on July 5, with superstar Messi returning with a semi-final spot waiting.
The Tango team easily topped Group A with a perfect record of three wins and the last match played with the second team also won Peru 2-0, while Ecuador held Mexico to a 0-0 draw, finishing in second place in Group B to enter the quarterfinals thanks to a better goal difference. The most notable thing in this match was Messi’s return from injury.
Argentina is the favorite.
Statistically, the opening stage of the Copa America has been almost perfect for Lionel Scaloni’s side, winning all three games and conceding no goals. All five of Argentina’s goals in the group stage have come in the second half, and they haven’t trailed in a Copa America match since the 2019 semi-final (a 2-0 loss to Brazil).
Argentina have won eight straight games in all competitions, conceding just two goals in that run. What’s more, Messi and co’s last three quarter-final appearances at this tournament have all been easy, with Argentina winning the match 9-1 on aggregate.
Only once this century have Argentina lost in the quarter-finals of a familiar tournament, when they hosted the Copa America in 2011, losing 5-4 on penalties to Uruguay. Furthermore, Argentina have never lost to Ecuador at the Copa America, winning their quarter-final meeting in 2021 3-0, while the World Cup champions have progressed beyond this stage four times in a row.
On the other side, despite being forced into a defensive position for most of the final match of the group stage, Ecuador was still able to hold Mexico to a draw and advance to the knockout round thanks to goal difference.
This is the second consecutive quarterfinal appearance for Ecuador, having reached the quarterfinals in three of the last four Copa Americas. Coach Felix Sanchez has the chance to lead his team to the semi-finals of the 2024 Copa America for the first time since 1993, with Ecuador losing three consecutive quarter-final matches in the competition.
Ecuador have yet to concede a goal in the first half of the tournament in the US, and have only scored once in the first 45 minutes of their 2-1 loss to Venezuela. The last time Ecuador scored first in a quarter-final at this tournament was in 1997 when they were beaten 4-3 by Mexico on penalties after the match finished 1-1.
It is worth mentioning that Ecuador have lost six of their last seven official matches against big rivals Argentina, with their most recent victory coming in 2015 (2-0).
Messi is back
Argentina captain Lionel Messi missed the final group game with a hamstring injury, although he has trained fully this week and is expected to feature in the quarter-finals. Messi returns, as do Alexis Mac Allister, Julian Alvarez and Rodrigo De Paul, who Scaloni rested on matchday three.
Argentina’s highlight has been striker Lautaro Martinez, who has scored in four consecutive games, as his brace helped his side win over Peru, while goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has kept four consecutive clean sheets in this tournament since 2021.
As for Ecuador, after missing the previous match due to suspension, the country’s all-time leading scorer Enner Valencia played the full 90 minutes on matchday three, replacing John Yeboah. That was also the only change in Ecuador’s starting lineup from the group stage, apart from Jose Hurtado having some time to replace Angelo Preciado in stoppage time.
Goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez saved four shots from Mexico to earn his first clean sheet of this year’s Copa America but Argentina will find it difficult to stop with superstar Messi returning and hungry to defend their title.
Who is the first player to join Argentina: E. Martinez; Molina, Romero, Li. Martinez, Tagliafico; Di Maria, De Paul, Mac Allister; Messi, La. Martinez, Alvarez; Ecuador: Dominguez; Preciado, Torres, Pacho, Hincapie; Franco, M. Caicedo; Yeboah, Paez, Sarmiento; Valencia.
Prediction: Argentina 3-0 Ecuador. Ecuador will likely make things difficult for their opponents in the first half, as they did in the group stage. However, an Argentina team with the return of their big-name striker Messi is usually comfortable in tight games, alongside a host of big-name stars who will crush Ecuador with a rain of goals.
