Messi can't lead Argentina vs Brazil, World Cup will have to wait

Brazil visited San Juan Centenario Stadium in Argentina for one of the most important Conmebol World Cup qualifiers. Ahead of this key game, the 'Canarinha' got to qualify to the World Cup directly before facing Argentina. They won 1-0 against Colombia and tok the pressure away from this game. Manager 'Tite' confirmed before tonight that Neymar picked up a minor injury and didn't even make the trip to San Juan. A Brazilian player who was on the starting eleven was Vinicius, tho took Neymar's spot on the left wing. The Real Madrid youngster quickly became a headache for Acuña on that side but he missed a couple of great chances that could've given his side the initial goal.

One of the key moments in the first half was a clear red card Otamendi should've seen after an elbow straight into Matheus Cunha's mouth. The Brazilian was inside the box so it should've also been a penalty but the ref didn't see it. Not even checking VAR convinced him it was a red card. Vinicius kept gaining more momentum as he even had a chance to lob the ball over Emiliano Martinez, but his attempt was wide over the bar. Leo Messi had few chances but the Brazilian defense was on point this evening. The visitors didn't shine much in the first half but they certainly defended almost perfectly against this Argentina side. Messi does seem to run slower than usual, his knee pain must be important for him to not push to the limit.

Vinicius missed the best chance of the game.

When the second half got underway, Lionel Scaloni decided to make two substitutions that didn't work much against this defensive Brazilian team. Vinicius had the most important chance of the game with a direct shot to the goalkeeper he could've easily positioned better. He also made Argentine defenders suffer with a couple of great individual moments but Angel Di Maria got revenge with a beautiful nutmeg on the Real Madrid youngster. Leo Messi struggled a little too much, he seemed always slow and just off. The rumors of his knee still hurting picked up more steam after tonight's performance. There's a good chance he is still playing with an important level of pain. However, there is no chance he would've missed tonight's game.

During the final minutes, Leo attempted a long-range strike that Alisson Becker denied him but the reality is that Brazil played great defense this evening. Not everything is lost for Argentine though, Ecuador's possible victory against Chile will still grant them the direct ticket to the World Cup. If that doesn't happen, they will have to wait until the beginning of 2022. Tonight's result wasn't alarming because Argentina still has a lot of room to maneuver. Nobody doubts they will directly qualify to the 2022 World Cup un Qatar.

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