In a game that featured 31 fouls and six yellow cards, it was Argentina who emerged victorious after winning 2-1 over last year’s Copa America winner Chile in front of a huge crowd at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Monday. Winger Angel Di Maria and midfielder Ever Banega each finished with a goal and an assist apiece, and Argentina’s two defensive midfielders and four defenders defended pugnaciously for ninety minutes to keep Chile off the board. But Chile got a crucial goal in second-half stoppage time when substitute Jose Fuenzalida headed in an Orellana free kick. While Fuenzalida’s goal was too little, too late for Chile, it may help Chile in the future if goal differential needs to be used as a tiebreaker to decide whether or not Chile advances to the knockout round. Aside from Fuenzalida’s goal, it was almost all Argentina on Monday, and the fact that they played so well with Lionel Messi on the bench speaks to how deep this 2016 Argentina Copa squad is.
Player ratings (1-10, with 10 the best)
Argentina
GK Sergio Romero, 6.5 -- Made a great save to deny Alexis Sanchez in the 30th minute after Sanchez received a pass at the top of Argentina’s 18-yard-box. Saved an Orellana volley comfortably and didn’t have a great deal to do, but blotted his copybook when he came out to claim Orellana’s free kick and got nowhere near it. Fuenzalida instead headed Orellana’s pass past Romero and into an empty net, and Romero will certainly be kicking himself after his mistake cost his team a shutout victory. He still performed well, and will need to be on his toes when Argentina takes on pesky Panama on Friday.
RB Gabriel Mercado, 7 -- Was tasked with stopping Chilean winger Jean Beausejour, and did his job well. Beausejour did put in a couple of good crosses, but Mercado succeeded in closing him down and not giving him much time on the ball. Also intercepted a couple of passes and frequently supported winger Nicolas Gaitan down the right flank.
CB Nicolas Otamendi, 8 -- The Manchester City center back went toe-to-toe with Chilean dynamo Alexis Sanchez, who plays for rival EPL team Arsenal, and won a majority of his one-on-one battles with him. He athletically cleared the ball to safety or out for a corner kick numerous times, and whenever he felt pressure, cleared the ball upfield instead of trying to pass the ball to a teammate. An imperious display from the 28-year-old.
CB Ramiro Funes Mori, 6 -- The Everton FC center back did well to track forward Eduardo Vargas and frequently communicated with his back line, but his name was rarely called for much of the game. He didn’t make any mistakes or put his team in a tight spot, so it was mission accomplished for the former River Plate product.
LB Marcos Rojo, 7 -- The Manchester United left-back didn’t put in many accurate crosses, but defended well against Vargas and right midfielder Charles Aranguiz. Rojo endured somewhat of an inconsistent season in Manchester, but he was comfortable with the ball at his feet and won a number of aerial duels. He headed a ball just wide of Chile goalkeeper Claudio Bravo’s goal in the 86th minute.
MF Javier Mascherano, 7.5 -- The FC Barcelona midfielder and longtime Argentina stalwart was at his best against Chile on Monday. He played a couple of defense-splitting passes but mostly contributed by harassing Chile forward Sanchez and midfielder Arturo Vidal into committing turnovers. Stopped numerous Chile attacks and worked really well with fellow defensive midfielder Augusto Fernandez.
MF Augusto Fernandez, 7.5 -- The Atletico Madrid midfielder doesn't have as high a work rate as his midfield partner Mascherano, but his composed passing and calmness on the ball were integral to Argentina’s success. He made a couple of crunching tackles and ran stride-for-stride with Vargas and later Orellana, and never looked out of place in an experienced Argentine midfield. His underrated performance may have earned him another start when Argentina takes on Panama later this week.
MF Nicolas Gaitan, 7 -- Showed his attacking intent with a header off of the crossbar in the fourth minute. Spent the rest of the match getting fouled, and finished the match with six fouls won. Argentina fans will be hoping that his collection of injuries won’t hinder his play on Friday, since his ability to win fouls and run past defenders was effective in today’s win.
MF Ever Banega, 8 -- A goal and an assist for the highly-rated Sevilla FC man, who continues to produce for both club and country. Banega found Di Maria with an incisive pass to get an assist for the first goal, then beat goalkeeper Bravo via a slight deflection to double Argentina’s lead. He may not look like your prototypical #10, but he pulled the strings for Argentina on Monday.
MF Angel Di Maria, 9 -- A man-of-the-match performance from Di Maria, who is more than capable of carrying the creative burden with Messi out injured for the time being. He dazzled the fans with an array of slick dribbling moves in the first half, and he sent a pinpoint ball to Gaitan which Gaitan headed onto the crossbar. He scored the game’s opening goal and found Banega for the eventual game-winner, but his passing and creativity on the ball was just as important.
FWD Gonzalo Higuain, 6 -- Higuain scored a Serie A-record 36 goals for Napoli this season, but found scoring chances hard to come by against an organized Chile defense. Had a hard shot kick-saved by ‘keeper Bravo in the 66th minute, but was frustrated with his teammates’ inability to get him the ball. With star striker Sergio Agüero on the bench, Higuain will need to have a good week of training if he wants to keep his starting spot in Argentina’s next match against Panama.
Substitutes
FWD Sergio “Kun” Agüero, 6.5 -- Replaced Higuain in the 74th minute. Served a great ball to Marcos Rojo which Rojo headed just wide of Bravo’s right post. Made some clever runs and gave Argentina an outlet to pass to whenever they were under pressure. May replace Higuain in the starting lineup in Argentina’s next match.
MF Erik Lamela, 6 -- Replaced Di Maria, who left to an ovation, in the 80th minute. Worked hard to harry the Chile backline into committing turnovers, and forced Claudio Bravo into a solid save in the 92nd minute.
MF Matias Kranevitter, NR (no rating) -- Replaced Gaitan in the 87th minute. Did not do enough to earn a rating.