Argentina beat Ukraine 2-0 to progress to the quarter-finals at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
A close first half saw both teams have chances, with Manchester City's Julian Álvarez being Argentina's main threat in the final third after going close early on.
Even though they had the better side on paper, Ukraine proved to be the dominant side for the majority of the opening period, which saw Arseniy Batagov go close with his strike from a set-piece.
The Argentines were struggling to break down a robust Ukraine rearguard and the illusive opener would have had to have come from a moment of magic: Thiago Almada provided that. The 23-year-old, who has recently signed for Botafogo in Brazil from Atlanta United, sent his ferocious strike into the top corner to leave Kiril Fesiun helpless in the Ukraine goal.
That wasn't the end of the story though as Ukraine continued to trouble the Argentinian defence with Dmytro Kryskiv and Ihor Krasnopir both having chances to draw level in the closing stages. Nonetheless, Argentina showed their class and made sure they would be topping the group in the first minute of additional time as 18-year-old Claudio Echeverri slotted home.
Story of the match
There was only one change for Ukraine, who netted a penalty in the eighth minute of additional time to beat Morocco 2-1 last time out, as Maksym Talovierov replaced Volodymyr Salyuk at centre-back.
Álvarez had a new strike partner with Luciano Gondou coming in for Lucas Beltrán, Giuliano Simeone replaced Santiago Hezze and Julior Soler came in place of Joaquín García - three changes from the 3-1 win over Iraq.
Argentina looked dangerous from the off and Manchester City's Álvarez looked to be the man responsible for breaking down a Ukraine defence that had conceded three goals in two games. The forward nearly saw the net bulge with 11 minutes on the clock as Simeone managed to expertly hold up the ball for Álvarez, seeing his curling effort narrowly miss the top corner.
Despite their early relentless pressure, the Ukrainians grew into the game and nearly took a surprise lead five minutes later as a move off of the training ground saw Kryskiv's perfectly weighted pass from a free-kick fall for Batagov whose tame effort went out for a corner.
They continued to have a good spell of dominance in the game and Dynamo Kyiv's Maksym Braharu would have been frustrated that nobody in yellow was able to connect with his inviting delivery. In a similar move moments later, Braharu managed to pick out Maksym Khlan at the back post but he couldn't guide his header towards the target.
For all of Argentina's attacking prowess, they struggled to break down the Ukrainian backline and while the recently-crowned Copa America champions did look a threat going forward, Ukraine dealt with whatever was thrown at them for the most part.
The link-up between Álvarez and Simeone was likely to be Argentina's best route to goal and the two combined to good effect again. Álvarez played a defence-splitting pass to the 21-year-old but his strike was a routine save for Fesiun.
Ukraine had Fesiun to thank when Javier Mascherano's side neatly carved out an opening soon after, Álvarez again the creator in chief and he provided for the Atlético Madrid forward who saw his strike met by a sublime save from close range.
This end-to-end encounter saw Ukraine go close next just before the break. Mykola Mykhaylenko maneuvered past Marco Di Cesare on the left flank and he put the ball on a plate for Kryskiv but his strike was met by several Argentinian defenders.
It didn't take long for Argentina to get the opener in the second half and a moment of individual brilliance one minute in put them a step closer to the quarter-finals. Talented attacking midfielder Almada found a pocket of space on the edge of the box and his perfectly-aimed strike flew into the top corner.
With Ukraine known for their defensive set-up and them now needing at least two goals to qualify, this worked into Argentina's hands who were now looking to double their lead and essentially put the game to bed.
However, the Ukrainians were still in this one and captain Kryskiv had their best chance of the second half just before the 70-minute mark when his curling strike brought Gerónimo Rulli into action but he easily collected.
This proved to be the confidence Ukraine needed to go on to find an equaliser and they really should have drawn level minutes later. Oleh Fedor's ball over the top of the Argentinian defence fell to the feet of Kryskiv which caused confusion in the Argentinian box, the ball eventually falling to Krasnopir who couldn't test Rulli.
Argentina added the cherry on top of the cake in added time with a second as Kevin Zenon's strike was pushed away by Fesiun but only into the path of Echeverri who swept home the rebound.
Player of the Match - Thiago Almada
The man who got the only goal of the game to ensure Argentina progressed to the quarter-finals, they may have found another man to count on for moments of individual brilliance instead of relying on Álvarez.
His well-taken goal emphasises his quality on the ball and potentially how he should be utilised for the national team more often as he has currently only got four caps to his name.
Almada also netted in the victory over Iraq and could prove to be a key player in the knockout stages.
