Argentina opened Copa America with a 0-2 loss
Strikers Roger Marinez and Duvan Zapata helped Colombia win their opening match in Group B.
While Argentina started awkwardly under the guidance of young coach Lionel Scaloni, Colombia became more dangerous thanks to the experience of new coach Carlos Queiroz. With just a few simple combinations, the group of players including Cuadrado, Falcao, James Rodriguez and Barrios could also cause trouble for goalkeeper Armani. If Pezzella had not cleared the ball from Falcao's feet, or if the "Tiger"'s shot had not bounced off an Argentine defender, the first half score could have been 2-0 in favor of Colombia.
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| Argentina has yet to return to being a real team. Photo: Reuters |
Argentina had two stormy situations, both created by Messi. In the first, the Argentine captain dribbled the ball through a defender before being cleared just before the moment of finishing. The second time was a situation where he headed the ball close to the goal but the ball went just wide of the post. Failing to take advantage of the rare opportunities, Messi and Argentina paid a heavy price in the final minutes of the match. In the 70th minute, after a mistake by full-back Saravia, Roger Martinez entered the penalty area and fired a powerful shot past Armani. The score was 1-0 for Colombia.
The final minutes continued to be a time for Colombia to show off their sharp counter-attacking weapons. Coach Queiroz showed his skill by bringing Zapata on to replace Falcao and he only had to wait 5 minutes to score the second goal. After receiving a cross from the left wing, Zapata leaned over to tap the ball in to seal the 2-0 victory.
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| Colombia won convincingly and deservedly. |
Meanwhile, despite having to accept the result, Argentina still have hope of reaching the quarter-finals. Scaloni and his students will face Paraguay and Qatar in the next two matches. They need to win to secure second place, or become one of the two best third-placed teams.
