World Cup Qualifiers Results: Messi Absent, Argentina Wins By Minimum

The World Cup qualifiers were closely watched by fans as Argentina had to play away against a strong opponent, Uruguay. Lionel Messi was absent as the Argentine media reported that he had suffered an injury while playing for Inter Miami.

Thiago Almada scored to help Argentina win (Photo: Reuters)

Specifically, Messi suffered a muscle strain after the match between Inter Miami and Atlanta United in MLS. This injury is not serious but the coaching staff of the Argentina national team did not risk letting Messi play in this match.

Along with Messi, some other names are also absent due to injury such as Lautaro Martinez, Paulo Dybala or Giovani Lo Celso. However, the Argentina team still entered the match with confidence when facing the Uruguay team on the away field.

The two teams played tit for tat right after the opening whistle. Even without Messi, Argentina still had dangerous attacks on the home team Uruguay's goal.

Despite playing away, Argentina were the team that created more dangerous opportunities. In the 68th minute, Thiago Almada opened the scoring with a long-range shot from outside the box that curled into the far corner, but goalkeeper Rochet, despite diving as far as he could, was still unable to block it.

After taking the lead, Argentina slowed down their play to preserve the score. Despite their best efforts, Uruguay were unable to equalize, despite Argentina losing a man when Nicholas Gonzalez received a red card in the 90+1 minute.

In the end, Argentina won 1-0, thereby consolidating their position at the top of the South American region. On March 26, Argentina will have an important match against their rival Brazil.