January 10, 2025

Argentina bury Brazil at Rio’s iconic Maracana despite crowd trouble

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Argentina thrashed Brazil 1-0 on Tuesday in a keenly contested 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match marred by pre-match crowd trouble.

The World Cup winners won late into the game, thanks to a 63rd-minute header from veteran defender Nicolas Otamendi.

Argentina was desperate to bounce back from last week’s defeat to Uruguay against their continental archrival, Brazil.

The win at Rio’s iconic Maracana Stadium leaves Argentina on top of the South American qualifying standings with 15 points from six games. The five-time world champion, Brazil, is in sixth place with seven points from six games.

Speaking after the game, Lionel Messi believes there “could have been a tragedy” during the crowd tension that delayed Argentina’s World Cup qualifier against Brazil.

“It was bad because we saw how they were beating people,” said Messi as police charged against away fans.

“The police, as happened in the Libertadores final, were once again repressing the people with night sticks.

“We went to the locker room because it was the best way to calm everything down, it could have ended in tragedy.

“You think about the families, the people who are there, who don’t know what’s going on and we were more concerned about that than playing a match that, at that point, was of secondary importance.”

 

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