Player ratings: Martinez excels on penalties in Argentina win

Goalie Emiliano Martinez was primary player to be on the pitch at the time in shootout penalties Argentina defeated Ecuador to make it to the finals of the Copa America.

By Luis Miguel Echegaray

Jul 05, 2024 04:04 AM

HOUSTON, Texas — On the American Independence Day, Lionel Messi and Argentina were determined to ignite an explosion for the fans by winning the an impressive quarterfinal victory however exactly like in their 2022 World Cup final, it was their goalie Emiliano Martinez , who played the title of hero after his two huge saves allowed his team to beat Ecuador in a thrilling penalty shootout to secure an appearance in the finals in Copa America. Copa America on Thursday night.

Following his inability take part in the final group stage match of Argentina in Peru due to an injury to the muscle Messi was able to be reinstated to his team’s starting lineup, and was able to guide Argentina’s current World Cup and Copa America champions to victory over Argentina’s South American rivals in a physically demanding game due to an injury to a muscle caused by a muscle strain in Houston. It was not an easy game for Argentina however even with their superiority, it was an opportunity that Ecuador should have had an advantage.

The first part of the game was controlled by La Tricolor in the beginning when their left-hand team was being pushed by Argentina’s backline frequently and took Full-back Nahuel Molina off guard. There was a moment where it was a great save from Martinez (from Jeremy Sarmiento) to ensure that the game was not scored.

Except for one fantastic strike and cross in the first 20 minutes Messi appeared to be still for the entire initial 30 minutes. Argentina like many teams took a little amount of time to get started but the longer the first half went on and the more tied the midblock of Ecuador and later, as Ecuador played man-to -man, Argentina was in a position to catch the pace.

Enzo Fernandez’s block after an attacking game that was counter-attacked led to a corner, and that’s the opening sequence of events. The cross of Messi was noticed from the Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister inside the box. He turned the ball toward the goal post. Then he found an unguarded Lisandro Martinez, and his Manchester United defender was waiting to strike. Argentina scored the first goal after they had entered the break.

The second period was full with excitement after Ecuador received an extra penalty after Rodrigo De Paul’s hand being stuck within the area. This was the perfect chance for Ecuador’s team Felix Sanchez Bas to level the score. However, Enner Valencia’s poor penalty caused Martinez’s team to lose their attempt to maintain a clean score throughout the whole season. The game was rearranged as Ecuador was equalized in stoppage time due to Kevin Rodriguez, which led to a dramatic penalty shootout.

This is the spot where Dibu was at one time was, he stood on behalf of his side, especially after Messi failed to score his goal in the panenka. It was Dibu, the Aston Villa stopper who has been a key player in these situations before, in both Copa America and the World Cup has created two huge chance. His teammates did the remainder of the game by scoring penalty kicks, and in the end, Argentina came out victorious.

It’s clear that the head coach Lionel Scaloni will probably leave this game with an ounce of wisdom as the team had too many opportunities and weren’t very powerful when it came to forward. In reality, Ecuador should have won the game in only the 90-minute mark. There’s a plenty to think about for Scaloni.

But that’s another story. A place in the final four is in the pipeline for The Albiceleste. The Albiceleste will determine who wins Venezuela and Canada.

MANAGER RATING (1-10)

Lionel Scaloni, 5-5 5- 5. Changes were made little late and in spite of the fact that his team begun to play, Scaloni struggled to motivate his team to play the extremely quick, athletic and forward-thinking Ecuadorian midfielder, in particular Moises Caicedo who was everywhere. Argentina triumphed however it wasn’t a simple feat and definitely not due to the choices made by Scaloni.

Player Ratings (1-10 10: highest. The first time the player is introduced they do not receive any ratings)

GK Emiliano Martinez 9 -9 The biggest stop was made in the 14th minute was made of Jeremy Sarmiento and made himself larger mentally and physically after a missed penalty by Valencia. Then another incredible shooting display, including two massive saves. In the present, Messi is the top soccer player of Argentina. In fact, I’m with Messi.

DFA Nahuel Molina 6 –Not an ideal start to the opening period, with Molina becoming removed from his defensive responsibilities while Ecuador’s left team continued advance forward on to the line. However, as the game progressed, the player was active in the forward thinking games, assisting the vast zones in Argentina.

CSS0 Cristian Romero 6 A average performance from Cuti who started the game with a penalty in the game against Valencia in order to prove that he is there. He managed to do well, however not as impressive as the player he usually.

F Lisandro Martinez 7 -7 -A fantastic game. Martinez scored his debut goal for Argentina because of his head-shot in the opening second half. In the 80th minute, he scored his goal.

DF Nicolas Tagliafico 6 — A relatively quiet game in which the emphasis is on the defensive aspects in his game. Good tackles and runs throughout the second part.

MFC Enzo Fernandez 5 5, 5 Five – A decent head-on during the opening half and another during the final 35th minute, when Argentina attempted to counterattack but hit the defender. Overall, Fernandez was struggling to keep his head on the right track and was surrounded in the opening period by Chelsea players Caicedo.

MP Alexis Mac Allister 7, 7-7 The player was able to take care of a variety of errors made by the Argentina’s middlefield in the first half, and it was his move from Messi’s cross that led to the goal scored by Licha Martinez. The penalty was a converted.

The midfielder Rodrigo De Paul 6 -6 Uncharacteristic start to the match. He was the one of the midfielders from Ecuador who made a mistake that led to the penalty. He improved during the second half, but overall a good performance.

FM Nicolas Gonzalez: 7-7- A fantastic change for His Fiorentina player who would move across fields from his left. The player never stopped moving and was always receiving every ball.

The F Lionel Messi: 5 -5 A great run, a misplaced cross, and an excellent shot to Fernandez at the beginning of the second half, following not having many chances, but Messi didn’t have the same opportunity to compete alongside his team. His corner was the opportunity for the final goal, however. his presence important, but Messi was looking for his first goal in the tournament. Panenka was not scored in the shootout. Messi also recorded 32 ball touches against Ecuador in accordance with Opta The match’s report. This was the smallest number he has recorded in a 90 minute game for Argentina since 2011.

FW Lautaro Martinez 5-5 after a thrilling beginning to the tournament, the game was a quiet affair for Martinez Martinez, the Internazionale player. Many of the plays which didn’t have any effect. In the 64th minute, Martinez was replaced by Julian Alvarez in the 64th minute.

SUBSTITUTES

F.W. Julian Alvarez: 6 -6 A successful cameo appearance with the main purpose of running and pressing Messi. He tried an attack in half to get on. He was penalized and scored.

DF Nicolas Otamendi, N/A

MF Giovani Lo Celso, N/A

DF Gonzalo Montiel, N/A — Converted his penalty.