Lionel Messi made a triumphant return to the Argentina first team on June 14th, smashing three goals for the away team as they destroyed Guatemala 4-0. ‘La Pulga’s’ triple saw him overcome Diego Maradona in the Albiceleste top scorer rankings, tying with Hernan Crespo on 35, while Augusto Fernandez also found the net in a routine win.
Argentina‘s hopes of sealing qualification for next year’s FIFA World Cup™ were thwarted in a 1-1 draw with Ecuador on June 11th.
Argentina, who once again left Lionel Messi on the bench, had to settle for a point after Segundo Castillo cancelled out Sergio Aguero’s early spot kick for the visitors at the Olympic Stadium in Quito. Ugly scenes marred the closing stages, however, with Argentina captain Javier Mascherano sent off for kicking a medic who was stretchering him off the pitch in an incident that triggered a prolonged touchline melee.
Argentina and Colombia both finished with 10 men after a stormy but pulsating 0-0 draw in South American qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ on June 7th.
The Argentinians had striker Gonzalo Higuain sent off after a clash with Colombia’s Cristian Zapata midway through the first half and also saw two second-half goals from Sergio Aguero disallowed for offside.
Daniel's Argentina 