Argentina returned to winning ways with a narrow 1-0 win over Peru in 2026 World Cup qualifying action after a shock 2-1 defeat to Paraguay.

Lionel Scaloni’s side tried to break Peru’s low block with crosses into the penalty area and chipped passes over the back line. It didn’t work well in the first half as Argentina were suppressed by Julian Álvarez’s shot hitting the post, the only real chance the hosts had.

Just under 10 minutes into the second half, Lautaro Martínez opened the scoring with a brilliant volley that took the fans out of their seats at La Bombonera. The legendary Lionel Messi created the goal by dribbling through the Peruvian defense before sending a cross for Martínez to latch on. The goal marked Messi’s 58th international assist, which is tied with American legend Landon Donovan for the most.

The victory means Argentina now has 25 points from 12 matches in the CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifying table. La Albiceleste will take the field again in March 2025 for more World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil.

The hosts did well to get into good positions in the final third, but the final pass was often a disappointment no matter who was on the ball.

Argentina resorted to lofted balls and crosses into the penalty area, which were cleared by the Peruvian defense. Normally this Argentinian team would play the passes first time, but that wasn’t the case as Scaloni’s team wasn’t as accurate in the final third.

A bit of individual brilliance from Messi helped Argentina break through early in the second half, but the reigning World Cup champions were not as sharp as they could be.

Going into the match, Scaloni knew he would be without Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martínez due to respective foot and hip injuries. Romero and Martínez are arguably Argentina’s best central defenders, with Nicolás Otamendi occasionally filling in for Martínez.

Even without its two best defenders, Argentina managed to limit Peru’s chances all around. Peru tried to threaten the Argentina defense through set pieces with their tall, physical defenders, but La Albiceleste managed to keep them out of goal with solid performances from Otamendi and Leonardo Balerdi.

In the past, Martínez has often been on the verge of underperforming at international level and missing big opportunities on the biggest stages, such as the 2022 World Cup. However, the Inter Milan captain has silenced his critics with two goals in three games for Argentina, locking in the striker’s position for the foreseeable future.

Martínez’s confidence in an Argentina shirt appears to have soared after he scored the winning goal in the Copa América final against Colombia coming off the bench at the Hard Rock Stadium. Scaloni will hope Martínez can carry his impressive form into 2025 to secure Argentina’s place at the 2026 World Cup. Martínez has now scored 32 goals in 70 appearances for Argentina since his debut in March 2018.

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